What is the Golden Keys to Healthy Living?
The Golden Keys to Healthy Living is a 6-month program designed to help young overweight teens adopt a healthier lifestyle. The program will be run out of the Toronto Sick Kids Hospital as part of a medical study. As a participating Golden Key Honour Society Member, you will be the key to the entire program and will be a mentor for an overweight 12-16 year old participant. In this pivotal role you will have a life changing impact on your participant that will improve their health and wellbeing. This program is the first large scale scientific study of its kind.
What are my responsibilities as a mentor?
Mentors will spend about an hour each week participating in activities with their teen. For example, they may choose to play a sport or they may help the teen work through one of the educational components of the program or even take a trip to the grocery store and learn about label reading. Mentors will also have weekly contact by telephone or by email. As a mentor, you will be a potent motivator for success and a supporter to help your participant conquer challenges as they adopt a healthier lifestyle.
What experience do I need to be a mentor?
This program probably appeals especially to students in Health Sciences, Nutrition and Phys-Ed but actually, we encourage people from all disciplines to participate. You will not need prior experience to participate because you will learn all you need to know in advance of starting the program.
Do I need to have good fitness and eating habits?
NO! But you do need to have a willingness to walk the talk and develop healthy habits yourself. It may so happen that you actually get just as much out of mentoring as the participant in terms of knowledge about nutrition and physical activity and becoming healthier yourself.
When will the program start?
We will be recruiting mentors in Winter 2006.
What are some advantages to volunteering in this program?
By becoming involved, you will have the opportunity to meet and learn from professionals in the areas of Nutrition, Exercise physiology, Psychology, Endocrinology and Cardiology. Your contribution will also be recognized with a letter of participation from the Sick Kids Hospital.
The biggest reward you can get from participating is satisfaction from knowing that you have made a life changing impact on a teenager who is struggling with being overweight and the health and social difficulties that come with it.
How do I apply to become a mentor?
Please send a cover letter, resume and two references to lilian.lau@gkutoronto.com by Monday, January 30th, 2006. You will be contacted for an interview if an appropriate match is made with a participant in the study. |
