Blog

On Wednesday, February 4, 2026, schools within the Rochester City School District (RCSD) will celebrate Level Up Read & Play Day—a day dedicated to the joy of reading and the power of play! This special event combines two global celebrations—World Read Aloud Day and Global School Play Day—and Health...

As we start the new year, Healthi Kids remains committed to ensuring kids have access to healthy food and nutritious meals. In 2025, we were proud to support six R-Centers—Adams Street, Avenue D, Edgerton, Jackson, and Ryan—in bringing the Healthy Indoor Bill of Rights to life. With funding and sup...

We had a blast building the new playground at the Ryan R‑Center last October. We hope you and your family have had even more fun playing on it! Through our partnership with KABOOM! and their 25 in 5 initiative, we’re working with neighbors to create more great places to play and build community in...

Healthi Kids was thrilled to be included in a recent webinar organized by Hunger Solutions New York titled, “A Collaborative Approach to Summer Nutrition,” alongside partners from across the state. Moderated by Cody Bloomfield of Hunger Solutions New York, the discussion focused on how regional coll...

At this year’s Healthi Kids Coalition December meeting, we honored three incredible coalition members who go above and beyond to make our community feel supported, healthier and more playful.  Curtis Birthwright: The Good Energy Award Curtis has been bringing positive energy to our work sin...

Last month, Healthi Kids joined the Booktacular Fall Festival to share our infant mental health resources—and we added something new! Alongside our usual table, we set up a special play space with materials from our Infant & Toddler Play Days. Families loved it! Parents told us how much they appre...

Early on the morning of Oct. 3, volunteers began to arrive at the Ryan R-Center in Rochester’s Beechwood neighborhood. About 120 in total, they came ready to move three truckloads of mulch, mix five pallets of concrete, assemble playground elements and rebuild bleachers for the sports fields. "It f...

Are you a home-based early childhood educator or care provider? We know that you are vital to the health and well-being of the children in your care yet are often under-resourced or lack opportunities for professional development. That’s why Healthi Kids is offering a free training to help you level...

With the government shutdown putting a spotlight on the more than 150,000 people in our area who rely on federal food and nutrition assistance, we thought it timely to highlight one of our long-time partners working to end hunger: Foodlink. Many know Foodlink as a large food bank that stores and di...

Healthy food helps kids grow, gives adults energy, and keeps our bodies strong against illness. Everyone should have access to healthy food, but that doesn’t always happen. In 2021, Rochester started a food policy council to help improve how food is shared and sold in the community. Now you can hel...

In just one day this Friday, October 3, volunteers are building an entire playground from the ground up at the Thomas P. Ryan Recreation Center. Healthi Kids, the City of Rochester, Sierra, and KABOOM! are teaming up for this one-day community build—and it's not just any playground. This one was d...

“Joy in Motion” theme focused on play, creativity and recess as learning tools Dr. Deonna Smith used a tale of two schools to share how learning environments could be filled with – or empty of – joy. Both of the two schools had made impressive academic strides, Dr. Smith said, speaking during...

ROCHESTER – With summer in full swing, thousands of Rochester children are diving into sports, camps, activities, and neighborhood fun. But for many families, summer also brings a pressing challenge: ensuring consistent access to nutritious meals when school cafeterias close. The Summer Meals Part...

ROCHESTER, N.Y. – Healthi Kids is joining the global celebration of the International Day of Play on Wednesday, June 11. This year’s theme, “Choose Play – Everyday,” reminds families and communities of the importance of making time to play every day. To mark the occasion, Healthi Kids is launching...

Many families with kids younger than 6 are struggling with the cost of basic needs and childcare. But why and how much are they struggling? And what can lawmakers do about it? Those are just some of the questions that local nonprofits ROC the Future Alliance and Common Ground Health’s Healthi Kids...

It was once known as an Advocacy Agenda. But this past year the Healthi Kids Coalition completed a process to refresh and rename this document. Not meant to be an overhaul, it took this step to make sure its work on policies, systems and environmental changes remains relevant to the community. The...

Rochester kids will be learning as they jump, run and play games Wednesday, Feb. 5, during Global School Play Day. This is the second year Healthi Kids and Rochester have participated in the international event, which draws attention to the importance of play in schools. Healthi Kids will provi...

While the holiday season is a time to connect with family, friends, and community, Common Ground Health’s Healthi Kids Coalition is highlighting one particular type of love for its power to transform lives. Launching today, the “Love from the Start” campaign brings awareness to the idea that love an...

On October 19, Healthi Kids hosted their first-ever Infant & Toddler Play Day at three locations across Rochester: Phyllis Wheatley Library, Sully Branch Library, and Lincoln Toy Library. Around 30 children and their caregivers took part in fun, hands-on activities that encouraged healthy relations...

On Wednesday, September 25, something deeply disturbing happened in our city. A group of men arrived at 20 1st St, armed with riding mowers and weed whackers, and destroyed over 1,000 square feet of a beloved pollinator garden. This garden, carefully tended by the Taproot Collective for over seven y...

Growing up in the Highbridge neighborhood in the Bronx, Curtis Birthwright could see Yankee Stadium from his window. He could hear the roar of the games. As a Little Leaguer with the Colonial Park Yankees, he dreamed of playing in the major leagues – as a Yankee, of course. But he also played bas...

Healthi Kids will present its second Playful Learning Summit from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024, at the Memorial Art Gallery. This sold-out, day-long conference emphasizes the power of play and creativity inside and outside the classroom to spur physical activity, social-emotional growth...

It’s budget season in Albany! And that means it’s critical to continue to tell our legislators that whole child health matters. The $299 billion dollar state budget covers spending in a variety of areas including health, education, and aid to localities. In other words – it makes sure money moves to...

Excitement filled the air on February 7th as nearly 60 sites across the City of Rochester joined together for the international celebration of play called Global School Play Day. Organized by Healthi Kids in collaboration with the City of Rochester’s Department of Recreation and Human Services an...

It’s been celebrated in 75 countries. Now the Global School Play Day is coming to nearly 60 sites in the City of Rochester. To bring this event to Rochester, Healthi Kids collaborated with the City of Rochester’s Department of Recreation and Human Services and the Rochester City School District,...

As we near the end of sunshiny summer days, we reflect on a transformative season filled with impactful efforts by our Healthi Kids Coalition. Healthy Learning Environments: We partnered with schools like 10, 54, 33, and 19, enhancing back-to-school events with wholesome snacks and invigoratin...

Healthi Kids, in collaboration with the Strong National Museum of Play, will present the Healthi Kids Playful Learning Summit, scheduled for 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday, August 21, 2023, at the museum. This unique, day-long conference will delve into the immense potential of playful learning as a catal...

Date:        Saturday, June 10, 2023 Time:        12:00 - 4:00 p.m. Place:        Intersection of Arnett Blvd & Warwick Ave (310 Arnett Blvd, Rochester, NY 14619) Families and residents of the 19th Ward neighborhood, and a team of community partners* will join together on Saturday, June 10 to t...

Dear Director Reeve,  On behalf of the Healthi Kids Coalition, we urge you to allow a range of beneficial community garden activities on land owned by the Department of Transportation to promote whole child health in the City of Rochester. These activities should include play areas, events and ce...

We at Healthi Kids accomplished a lot last quarter! We partnered with organizations to promote healthy nutrition and physical activity in schools and underserved communities. We provided supplies and technical assistance to five schools, organized physical activity professional development sessio...