Cartoon Network Celebrates National Recess Week

ATLANTA: For its third annual celebration of national recess week, Cartoon Network has signed Olympic gold medalist Dwyane Wade to once again serve as the spokesperson, along with planning a host of other activities.

The week-long initiative, which kicks off March 2, has events planned at some 7,000 public and private elementary schools. Cartoon Network is rolling out more than $100,000 in school health and wellness grants and more than 100,000 iconic rubber balls that symbolize playtime, to be distributed to kids and teachers across the U.S. The multi-faceted prosocial campaign was created in 2006 to encourage the physical, emotional and scholastic benefits of daily recess for kids ages 6 to 12. The 2009 event will conclude with Get Animated events at Boys & Girls Clubs of America in the spring and a 40-city tour this summer.

Wade, a guard on the Miami Heat basketball team, serves as the on-air/online PSA host for national recess week, representing Cartoon Network’s ongoing partnership with the National Basketball Association’s social responsibility arm, NBA Cares. Joining Wade is former tennis pro and BGCA spokesperson Anna Kournikova and health-and-wellness expert Jillian Michaels (The Biggest Loser), who will attend onsite elementary school efforts in Miami and New York on March 3 to set an official Guinness World Record for the largest simultaneous game of four-square.

"I’ve always enjoyed working with kids and I’m grateful that my involvement with the NBA can help shine some needed light on how recess can be both fun and healthy," said Wade. "National recess week fits right in line with my Wade’s World Foundation, which provides support to community-based organizations that promote education, health and social skills for kids in at-risk situations. It’s all about what’s best for kids, so I’m delighted to play a role in Cartoon Network’s yearly campaign."

"This annual event has become a favorite for all of us at Cartoon Network as it offers the opportunity to benefit elementary schools across the country along with the chance to personally volunteer and serve kids in our own neighborhoods," commented Stuart Snyder, the president and chief operating officer for Turner Broadcasting’s Animation, Young Adults and Kids Media group. "Studies have shown that daily recess provides not only vital physical exercise but a much-needed break for all kids to refresh and re-energize for their in-classroom work."

Snyder continued, "We’re grateful that principals and gym teachers all over the country have embraced national recess week and recognize recess’s rightful place within each school day."