WELLESLEY, Mass., Dec. 13, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Sun Life
Financial U.S. has launched the Team Up Against Diabetes grant
program, which awards organizations throughout the country for
supporting diabetes prevention, management, and education efforts
in their local communities. As part of the launch, five benchmark
grant recipients were chosen in 2016.
Boys & Girls Clubs of Chicago, a long established community
organization, was awarded for their Triple Play: Mind, Body,
& Soul program, focusing on fighting childhood obesity
through extensive health, wellness, and fitness programs.
The Diabetes Health and Wellness Institute, serving Greater Dallas, Texas, received a grant for
their Diabetes Health and Wellness Institute Healthy Weight
Management Program, which delivers two curriculums: the
Healthy Eating and Exercise Lifestyle Program (HELP),
designed for at-risk adults, and the Group Lifestyle Balance
Program (GLB), which supports any adult who wishes to improve
weight and nutrition.
Dogs4Diabetics, in Northern
California, pairs assistance dogs with insulin-dependent
diabetics, with the goal of helping their clients live safe, full
lives. With the Sun Life Team Up Against Diabetes grant,
Dogs4Diabetics will be able to train a new dog and enable the
pairing of a service dog with a diabetic in need.
Legacy Weight and Diabetes Institute, in Portland, Oregon, was chosen for its
PreventT2 program, based on the CDC's Diabetes Prevention
Program. PreventT2 is a year-long course for at-risk or
pre-diabetic adults, helping them to improve nutrition, fitness,
and lifestyle choices. In addition to the standard classroom
setting, this grant will help them pilot the program virtually.
YMCA of Greater Hartford (Connecticut) received a grant for their
Diabetes Prevention Program, which is also modeled after the
CDC's program. The YMCA's program educates adults in danger of
developing type 2 diabetes by merging diet and exercise with group
lifestyle training.
Grant applicants are considered based on efforts toward the
diabetes cause and on innovative approaches to wellness, nutrition,
and obesity prevention. Applications are reviewed by a panel that
includes Sun Life employees, business partners, and other health
experts.
"We are thrilled to be able to help these great organizations in
their efforts to address diabetes prevention, management, and
awareness," said Dan Fishbein, MD,
President of Sun Life Financial U.S. "Sun Life is a strong
supporter and advocate of combatting type 2 diabetes, a disease
which we've unfortunately seen become an epidemic in this country.
We hope to see many more organizations applying to our Team Up
Against Diabetes grant program in the coming years."
The application process is now open for the 2017 Team Up Against
Diabetes grant program. Please visit www.sunlife.com/usgrants for
more information and to complete an application. All applications
must be submitted online and will be accepted through
March 31, 2017.
Sun Life is strongly committed to fighting type 2 diabetes,
having given over $17 million to the
cause globally. In the U.S., Sun Life is a national supporter of
the YMCA of the USA's Diabetes
Prevention Program, and is expanding its support to help the
organization bring the program to more communities across the
country. Sun Life also partners with the Boston Celtics to support
the YMCA of Greater Boston's
Diabetes Prevention Program through the annual
#SunLifeDunk4Diabetes campaign.
Also part of Sun Life's commitment to diabetes prevention,
education, and awareness is its national sponsorship of the
American Diabetes Association, its participation in several Tour de
Cure cycling events around the country, and its support of the
Association's Wellness Lives HereTM initiative, which
encourages wellness in the workplace.
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. Sun Life Financial has
operations in a number of 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. As of September 30, 2016, the Sun Life Financial group
of companies had total assets under management of $908 billion. For more information please visit
www.sunlife.com.
Sun Life Financial Inc. trades on the Toronto (TSX), New
York (NYSE) and Philippine (PSE) stock exchanges under the
ticker symbol SLF.
In the United States, Sun Life
Financial is one of the largest group benefits providers, serving
more than 60,000 employers in small, medium, and large workplaces
across the country. Sun Life's broad portfolio of products and
services in the U.S. includes Disability and Absence Management,
Life, Dental and Vision, Voluntary, and Stop-Loss insurance. This
includes the acquisition of Assurant Employee Benefits in Q1 2016.
For more information, please visit www.sunlife.com/us.
About the Sun Life Team Up Against Diabetes grant
program
The Sun Life Team Up Against Diabetes grant program
provides support to charitable organizations focusing on diabetes
prevention and management, as well as wellness, nutrition, and
obesity prevention. Grants are awarded in $10,000, $25,000,
or $50,000 amounts. For more
information, visit www.sunlife.com/usgrants.
Media contact:
Devon Portney Fernald
Sun Life Financial
781-416-7151
devon.portney.fernald@sunlife.com
SLPC 28015 12/2016 Exp
12/2021
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SOURCE Sun Life Financial U.S.