KTUU.com | Alaska's news and information source | Elementary school collects excess candy for homeless

Elementary school collects excess candy for homeless

by Lori Tipton
Monday, November 2, 2009

ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- One school in West Anchorage is being proactive to help prevent childhood obesity.

After striking it rich on Halloween, Sand Lake Elementary students voluntarily gave away a chunk of their candy stash.

The effort is the brainchild of the school health teacher and nurse who were successful in convincing kids that candy is okay, but only in moderation.

"Hey, those of you who brought candy for our candy fairies, make sure you stop right here," said Sarah Peebles, a health teacher at Sand Lake Elementary, to students arriving for the day.

"Most of our kids are going to three Halloween events every Halloween season and they're coming out with pillowcases full of candy. They keep their favorite pieces and donate the rest, so the time has come for us to do it a little differently," Peebles said.

This makes the third year the school has asked students to turn over some of their sweets.

It's meant to teach them the importance of lifetime healthy habits, one of which is moderation.

"But in this time of the obesity epidemic, we really need to be focusing on moderation," Peebles said.

"The kids get it, they really understand that their bodies only need a little bit of sugar; they don't need the tons of candy," she said.

Another healthy habit taught to kids through the project is kindness, because all the candy will be donated.

"We were gathering all the candy up for the homeless shelter so they can have some candy, since they didn't get to go trick-or-treating or anything," said fifth-grader Janelle Howe.

"They don't really need all that candy and the homeless people didn't get that much," said a classmate, Rachel Ige.

The bags of goodies will end up at the Brother Francis Shelter.

"The Brother Francis Shelter dishes that out nightly for the homeless people, so they practice moderation as well," Peebles added.

Last year, students donated 640 pounds of candy and the school expects to get about the same amount this year.

"I was really surprised, I thought we were not going to get that much," Howe said.

"If we're modeling healthy attitudes and behaviors, kids follow, and maybe it's the kids who are going to role model for us adults," Peebles said.

Students at Sand Lake Elementary can still drop off their excess Halloween candy through Wednesday morning.

The candy will be given to the Brother Francis Shelter later that afternoon.

Contact Lori Tipton at ltipton@ktuu.com