Kid’s Heart Challenge raises promotes heart-healthy lifestyle

This school year, three Pleasant Gap Elementary School students led in fundraising efforts for the Kids Heart Challenge to help support the American Heart Association, while promoting a heart-healthy lifestyle. At the same time, another student broke the jump rope school record by jumping consistently without a pause for 18:08 minutes.

In total, the school also raised $6,821.97, with more donations trickling in – and crushing the school’s $5,000 goal. This is the 14th year Pleasant Gap students have participated in this event.

“Kid’s Heart Challenge is an awesome event for many reasons,” health and physical education teacher Drew Funk said. “Throughout the course of KHC, students learn to improve their own health and lifestyle while raising donations for the American Heart Association to help kids facing heart-health issues. This year we focused on the heart, its functions and how to take care of it.”

One of the activities within the event is an endurance challenge where students have a friendly competition to see how long they can continuously jump for. Fifth-grade student Levi Heverly broke the school record during the event in December. The top three fundraisers were fifth-grader Norah Davis, fourth-grade student Easton Quinn and Evan Moyle, who’s in second grade.

At the end of the event, a schoolwide celebration was held that also allowed many of the students to pie Mr. Funk in the face with whipped cream.

Formerly known as Jump Rope for Heart, the event is sponsored by the American Heart Association and intended to educate students on the importance of heart health and to help raise money for the cause, by way of jump roping activities.