By Boris Esono Nwenfor

The Skip at Home campaign organized by the Noela Lyonga Foundation in partnership with Run the World Foundation came to an end May 30, 2020, with five (5) hundred skipping ropes distributed to children between the ages of 11-17 years.

The campaign saw the team from the Noela Lyonga Foundation visiting ten (10) communities in the Buea municipality such as Clerks Quarters, Bokwaongo, Mokunda, Molyko, Great Soppo, Bonduma, Wokoko, and Bakweri town. The children were also provided with face masks taking into consideration the present health crisis Cameroon like the rest of the world is presently going through.

To make sure that the children value the ropes, a small challenge was made in all the ten communities. For a child to get the skipping rope, he/she had to skip 50 times. However, special considerations were made by the team in some areas due to circumstances. For example, in some localities, the age range had to be brought down to encompass 9 year-olds due to the age rage of the village, while others with some physically challenged individuals who showed the zeal to take part in it but could not reach 50 jumps were given a skipping rope.

The Skip at Home campaign was out to promote a healthy and active lifestyle by encouraging young people to eat a balanced diet, avoiding excess alcohol and sugary drinks, saying no to smoking and preventing drug abuse, washing of hands with soap and water, and to encouraging young people to exercise at least an hour day (skip and stretch).

“So far we have been able to achieve our objectives. We have been able to give skipping ropes, face masks and educational posters to 500 children in the municipality,” Noela Lyonga, Founder/CEO of the Noela Lyonga Foundation said at the conclusion of the Skip at Home Campaign at Wokoko. “Most of these beneficiaries were very much welcoming, some did not find it as a good thing to do but in all it was a wonderful experience moving around these communities.”

Due to the present health situation with schools shut down, many of these children have almost nothing to do and some even walk around the streets without any face mask. The children during the various exercises were educated on how to wear the face masks properly, as some do not know how to wear it.

They were also called upon not to eat things that might affect their health lifestyle in the long run. Drinking alcohol and smoking was frowned upon while the children were told to eat a balanced diet with vegetables.

Not exercising often has a negative connotation on the body and health of an individual as this might affect their mental health and might lead to depression and the increase of many diseases like cancer, heart failures, and others.

The health messages passed across was not only meant for the children but the parents as well. Posters bearing various health messages were posted in the homes of these children who were given the face masks and skipping ropes. These posters are serving as a reminder to the children that they have to skip at least an hour a day.

At every household visited, the enthusiasm of the children to participate in the skipping exercise could not be hidden. The competition to get the skipping rope was sometimes very intense as the children were bent on going home with a rope.

“Keeping fit is very good because it is good for my health and it is what I usually do. It makes me strong and smart. With this rope that I have been given, I am going to continue doing sport, and I thank the donors of this beautiful gesture,” Saint Joyce, a beneficiary said.

Another beneficiary Awasa Urlsa said: “I do sport because it helps to build my immune system, and makes us healthy all the time. I am going to be using this skipping rope to do sport every morning and evening.” “I just want to call on the donors to come again and give more ropes so that those who did not benefit might get one to stay fit and healthy.”

The parents were not left out in the exercise. They were the cheerleaders, as they could be seen cheering their children on for the skipping rope. Some even asked to take part in the exercise to win a skipping rope for themselves. With the conclusion of this campaign, the call from the parents is for something similar to be done for them so that they can keep fit and stay healthy.

Follow Youths who Run the World on Instagram for more…