Atlanta Nonprofit, LHTYF teams up with The Home Depot and Axis Capital for a School Garden

ATLANTA - Oct. 2, 2023 - PRLog -- For more than a decade, Live Healthy & Thrive Youth Foundation (LHTYF) has invested in children by teaching them how to plant a vegetable garden. The concept is simple: to teach children where their food comes from as well as how to develop the skills to plant and grow it for themselves.

The Live Healthy & Thrive Youth Foundation will partner with Axis Capital and The Home Depot to present the 13th Annual Gardens Are For Kids™ project at Heritage Academy Elementary School in Atlanta, GA. The project is one of LHTYF's core educational programs designed to teach children basic agricultural lessons, food origins and empower them to make healthier choices.

The Gardens Are For Kids™ program focuses on donating a vegetable garden to assist public schools with an interactive gardening experience and S.T.E.M. compliance. The goal of the program is to teach children the importance of fresh foods for a healthy diet and lifestyle so they can ward off obesity, diabetes, and hypertension.

One in six youth in the U.S. have obesity, according to data from the latest National Survey of Children's Health. More specifically, 12.7% of 2- to 5-year-olds, 20.7% of 6- to 11-year-olds and 22.2% of 12- to 19-year-olds in the U.S. have obesity, according to research by the Centers for Disease Control in the Childhood Obesity Facts report of 2022.

"It's our job to teach children healthy food habits, especially those living in food deserts or low-income neighborhoods the principles of gardening and empower them with life skills to ward off preventable illnesses like obesity and diabetes, " said Dr. Lori A. Manns, President of Live Healthy & Thrive Youth Foundation, Inc. "For many children, participating in a school garden is their first exposure to agriculture. Being involved in a project where they participate from seed to harvest gives them a sense of accomplishment and an agricultural foundation to build upon," said Dr. Manns.

LHTYF's garden project is provided free to Atlanta area schools yearly and made possible by the support of sponsors and community donors. For more information about LHTYF, visit  http://www.livehealthyandthriveyouth.org or (800) 551-3775.

About Heritage Academy Elementary School

Heritage Academy Elementary School is located in the Orchard Knob community in southeast Atlanta. In April 2002, APS completed construction of a new facility in southeast Atlanta called Heritage Academy. It was formerly known as Minnie Howell Elementary, for Minnie Smith Howell a community advocate from the 1900's. The new Heritage Academy adopted the slogan "Soaring Eagles Reaching High Standards".  Heritage has a population of approximately 400 students.

About Live Healthy & Thrive Youth Foundation, Inc.

LHTYF was established in 2010 to teach kids healthy lifestyle habits and encourage the active involvement of parents in the metro Atlanta area regarding the health and wellness of their children. The mission of Live Healthy & Thrive Youth Foundation is to educate, activate, motivate, and empower youth in the areas of academic achievement, health, nutrition, fitness, and total wellness. LHTYF exists to educate children on healthy lifestyle habits, so they are more likely to avoid obesity, diabetes, and hypertension. http://www.livehealthyandthriveyouth.org