Bend girl, 12, represents Oregon at national summit

This time of year, most 12-year-olds are focused on getting their new school clothes and supplies together while enjoying those last few days of sunshine and freedom before going back to school.

Not Joyce Lopez of Bend. She’s already doing her homework and thinking about how she can make High Desert Middle School a healthier place.

After representing Oregon at a national summit in Chicago last month featuring some big-name celebrity NFL athletes, she has big plans for her new school.

The national Fuel Up to Play 60 summit brought together 150 students and 95 program advisors from 45 states to talk about making healthy, sustainable changes and ideas for representing and promoting the program at the local level.

Fuel Up to Play 60 is the premier in-school nutrition and physical activity program in the U.S. Inspired and led by youth, Fuel Up to Play 60 empowers students to eat healthy, be active and make positive changes in their schools and communities.

The program – created in partnership with the Oregon Dairy Council and the NFL, in cooperation with USDA – is active in more than 73,000 schools nationwide.

As a Fuel Up to Play 60 Student Ambassador for Elk Meadow Elementary School, Joyce was the sole state ambassador from Oregon at the national summit. Her trip was made possible by the backing of local community support and fundraising.

Crista Hawkins, Fuel Up to Play 60 manager for the Oregon Dairy Council, traveled to Chicago for the summit with Lopez, and she was impressed by the student’s commitment and ambition to lead healthy change.

“Joyce showed leadership and initiative at the summit among her peers, and she continues to prove that dynamite comes in small packages,” said Hawkins. “She has done great work at Elk Meadow Elementary, and I am confident that her enthusiasm and vision will benefit her new junior high.”

Earlier this year, Elk Meadow Elementary was one of five schools in Oregon that reached Fuel Up to Play 60 “Touchdown Status” by completing a series of requirements that demonstrate deeper engagement in promoting wellness.

High Desert Middle School doesn’t yet have a Fuel Up to Play 60 program, but Joyce says she wants to fix that.

Locally, the Oregon Dairy Council manages Fuel Up to Play 60 grants, supporting school-wide activities in both physical education and better access to nutrition, including school breakfasts.

In the latest round, districts and schools will receive a combined $73,185. From those schools, the combined reach will be approximately 8,700 students throughout Oregon.

To learn more about Fuel Up to Play 60 in Oregon, click this link.