BOSTON and PORTLAND, Maine, Jan.
19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The Boston Celtics and
Sun Life Financial have partnered once again for Fit to Win, a
4-week program aimed at improving the health and well-being of
children, as well as promoting diabetes education. Timed to
coincide with NBA Fit Week, this year's program will expand from
select YMCAs of Greater Boston to
include YMCAs in Southern Maine.
Throughout the program, children in grades 3 to 6 participate in
daily workouts and are encouraged to maintain a nutritious diet and
make healthy lifestyle choices, such as limiting TV or other screen
time. With exciting Celtics-themed events and prizes, and
involvement from Celtics players, the kids track their fitness and
health activities while having fun and celebrating their
accomplishments.
Greater Boston's program will
start this Thursday, January 21, at
the Waltham YMCA. Over 100 kids from several local YMCA-affiliated
schools will gather together for Draft Day to learn about their
fitness activities and potential prizes, and then get "drafted"
into the 2016 program. Southern
Maine's Fit to Win Draft Day will take place next
Tuesday, January 26, at the Portland
YMCA, and will include kids from neighboring New Gloucester, Freeport, and Biddeford. Fit to Win will culminate with a
Championship Event celebration this March in both Boston and Southern
Maine, where the participants will be recognized for their
hard work and dedication in completing the program.
"We are proud to expand our Fit to Win program to include
Maine this year," Celtics Team
President Rich Gotham said. "Last
year we had 90 kids from around Greater
Boston participate, along with visits from Avery Bradley, Marcus
Smart and other Celtics players. The team involvement, the
support from Sun Life, and the kids' boundless enthusiasm made last
year's Fit to Win a huge success. We look forward to seeing more
great results this year."
"The Celtics, YMCA and Sun Life have a shared passion for
promoting health and wellness in Boston and Greater New England communities,"
said Dan Fishbein, President, Sun
Life Financial U.S. "Expanding Fit to Win to Southern Maine is a great way to mark the
first full year of our newly opened Center for Healthy Work in
Greater Portland, which works
towards returning disabled workers to their jobs. In our industry
we see first-hand the devastating effects that diabetes and its
related health risks can have on people and their families, which
is why education, especially early education, is such an important
aspect of fighting the disease."
The Fit to Win program is an extension of the diabetes
prevention initiative #SunLifeDunkforDiabetes, a November campaign
that has raised more than $170,000
for the YMCA of Greater Boston's
Diabetes Prevention Program. Fit to Win is a major component of Sun
Life's ongoing commitment to inform Americans about the risk
factors and health consequences associated with the disease, and
was launched in 2014 to focus on children and their need for early
education about diabetes prevention, healthy living and
fitness.
For more information about the Celtics partnership with Sun Life
Financial and its community involvement, go to
www.celtics.com/SunLifeFitToWin and visit
www.sunlife.com/usdiabetes.
About the Boston Celtics
A charter member of the
Basketball Association of America (which evolved into the National
Basketball Association) since 1946, the Boston Celtics have won a
record 17 NBA Championships, including eight (8) in a row from
1959–1966, winning their first title in 1957 and their most recent
in 2008. The Celtics have long stood for equality, and respect,
including hiring the first African American Coach and starting the
first all black starting five. In addition, 35 former Celtics
players, management or staff have been inducted into the Naismith
Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. In December 2002 the team returned to local
ownership for the first time since 1963. For more information on
the Celtics, log on to www.celtics.com.
About Sun Life Financial
Sun Life Financial is a
leading international financial services organization providing a
diverse range of protection and wealth products and services to
individuals and corporate customers. The Sun Life Financial group
of companies operates under the "Sun Life Financial" name strictly
as a marketing name and no legal significance is expressed or
implied. Sun Life Financial and its partners today have operations
in key markets worldwide, including Canada, the United
States, the United Kingdom,
Ireland, Hong Kong, the
Philippines, Japan,
Indonesia, India, China,
Australia, Singapore, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Bermuda. In the
United States and elsewhere, insurance products are offered
by members of the Sun Life Financial group that are insurance
companies. In the United States,
Sun Life Financial provides a range of products and services to
employers and their employees, including Group and Voluntary
Accident, Critical Illness, Dental, Disability, Life, and Stop-Loss
insurance products. Sun Life Financial Inc., the holding company
for the Sun Life Financial group of companies, is a public company.
It is not an insurance company and does not offer insurance
products for sale in the United
States or elsewhere, and does not guarantee the obligations
of its insurance company subsidiaries. Sun Life Financial Inc.
trades on the Toronto (TSX),
New York (NYSE), and Philippine
(PSE) stock exchanges under the ticker symbol SLF. For more
information, please visit www.sunlife.com/us.
Contacts:
|
Heather Walker,
Boston Celtics, 617-854-8072, hwalker@celtics.com
|
|
Taylor
Kielpinski-Rogers, Boston Celtics, 617-399-8430,
taylor@celtics.com
|
|
Devon Portney
Fernald, Sun Life Financial, 781-263-7151,
devon.portney.fernald@sunlife.com
|
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SOURCE Sun Life Financial - United
States