Physical activity plays an important role in the reduction and prevention of obesity in youth, but only one in three children are physically active on a daily basis.
Since public parks and trails offer diverse opportunities for physical activity and are generally free or very low-cost, they have great potential to positively impact physical activity levels in surrounding neighborhoods. Greenville County has more than 100 parks for community members to enjoy, but historically they have been under-utilized. Increasing awareness and promoting park visitation is an excellent opportunity to increase physical activity for children and family members of all ages.
With all this in mind LiveWell Greenville and local parks and recreation partners created Park Hop in 2013. Park Hop is a summer-long scavenger hunt designed to foster awareness, appreciation and usage of Greenville County parks, as well as increase time spent in physical activity while creating an annual tradition for families.
This summer with Park Hop in its sixth year:
- More than 1000 children signed up Park Hop
- 547 children completed enough park visits to earn a prize
- Park Hoppers completed 6821 park visits in 2018!
In its 6 year history over 4400 kids have completed over 19,000 park visits.
Thanks to the collaboration of all local parks and recreation departments and several local businesses and organizations across Greenville County, Park Hop has grown to an annual active living tradition for families from every part of Greenville County. Park Hop partners are already beginning to plan to Park Hop 2019, with an emphasis on increasing participation from children and families with less access to physical activity opportunities.
For more information, contact Sabrina Smith.
“We have been Park Hopping since the program started! We love Park Hop and look forward to visiting the different parks each year!”
“We are new to the area and this was a perfect way for us to explore the great parks around us.”
“We are very appreciative for you guys doing this! I have NEVER been outside so much during the summer or sweated so much! So trying to get people out totally worked!”they logged correct answers. to learn more about local parks and recreation agencies and t
““What you are doing for the families of this community is beyond words! You are opening the eyes of existing Greenville families and new residents alike to the parks and amenities our great city has to offer.””
– Park Hop Mom