This site provides support for the Office of the Lt Governor. For updated info on the Governor, use Governor.illinois.gov.

Office of Governor Pat Quinn

Community Resources Exploring Illinois I Am A... I Want To... Illinois Carpool Teachers Resource Desk
Blackout Solutions Clean Water Green Solutions Healthy Communities Illinois Carpool Illinois Connect Illinois Main Street Illinois to the World No Pay Raise Operation Homefront Rural Affairs Save Our Eagles Save Our State Parks Service Learning Taxpayer Action Walk Across Illinois
Events Games Resources Stories Videos

Walk Across Illinois Kids Program



As thousands of children headed off for their first day at Chicago Park District summer camps Monday, they began a virtual journey taking them from the Mississippi River all the way to Lake Michigan � thanks to Lt. Gov. Pat Quinn�s Walk Across Illinois Kids Program.

The program, part of Lt. Gov. Quinn�s Walk Across Illinois initiative, encourages children to take part in a fun and varied exercise program that includes walking, playing with Frisbees, even dancing. As children reach milestones in their virtual walk across the state, they learn fun facts about Illinois communities along the way.

�Walk Across Illinois Kids Program teaches these young campers about their home state as they learn to make physical fitness a part of every day,� Quinn said. �I applaud the Chicago Park District for partnering with us in this program, and giving children a tangible goal that helps put them on the path toward lifelong health.�

�Fitness is a core part of the Chicago Park District�s mission,� said Chicago Park District General Superintendent and CEO Timothy J. Mitchell.�Walk Across Illinois Kids Program reinforces our commitment to the health and well-being and the overall development of children in Chicago.�

The Walk Across Illinois Kids Program, offered at no charge to children�s summer camps throughout Illinois, helps camp directors incorporate interactive, child-friendly physical activities into a broader curriculum.

The program includes standard fitness activities, such as circuit training, along with such special features as Staley Football � an indoor three-on-three football game named after the Chicago Bears� original owner � and the Three Presidents Passing Game, a Frisbee toss honoring the three U.S. Presidents from Illinois: Abraham Lincoln, Ulysses S. Grant and Ronald Reagan.

Participating campers who complete the eighteen sessions and other recommended activities will rack up physical activity equivalent to walking 167 miles, the width of Illinois.

�We hope camps throughout the Land of Lincoln will follow the Chicago Park District�s excellent example and include Walk Across Illinois Kids Program in their own summer programs,� Quinn said.

The Walk Across Illinois Kids Program builds on the success of Lt. Governor Quinn�s Walk Across Illinois Initiative, which is helping more than 9,000 Illinois residents complete their own 167-mile virtual walks across the state.

The Walk Across Illinois initiative follows the path Quinn took in 2001, when he and his physician, noted activist and public health advocate Dr. Quentin Young (then 78 years old), hiked from the Mississippi River to Lake Michigan to promote decent health care for everyone.

For more information on the Walk Across Illinois Kids Program curriculum, or to sign up for Walk Across Illinois, please visit www.WalkAcrossIllinois.org or call program coordinator Dan Persky at 312-814-8796.