By Rosie Woods and as it appeared on ABC57's site on December 17, 2014
SOUTH BEND, Ind. -A South Bend group is working to keep your kids moving when the mercury drops.
The “Experience the Ice Program” is one way the Compton Family Ice Arena is working to fight childhood obesity.
Numbers from the CDC show a third of children and teens are overweight or obese.
An active lifestyle helps keep kids at healthy weights, but it's tough finding activities in the winter.
The arena is giving local students the chance to hit the ice, some for the first time.
Students get the opportunity to spend the day on the Notre Dame ice, getting skate lessons from instructors, and learning about healthy eating.
Students say some of the best parts included meeting local “celebrities” from the university's hockey team.
"The kids should be involved and active. During the winter time its particularly more difficult for the kids to have an activity so when this came across our pe teacher's desk she thought it would be an excellent way to get our kids involved with another sport and an activity in the winter time," said Angela Budzinski, Principal of Holy Cross Elementary.
This year the Compton Family Ice Arena has partnered with St. Joseph Regional Medical Center and their thiscounts.org movement which believes that as a community we need to do what we can to bring exercise and nutrition into lives.