Boys & Girls Clubs of America and The Coca-Cola Company Extend National Partnership to Promote Healthy Active Lifestyles

Partnership will support award-winning youth health program

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Mar 26, 2015, 11:15 ET

ATLANTA, March 26, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Today, Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA) and The Coca-Cola Company announced a new five-year extension of their national partnership to promote healthy lifestyles to young people. The announcement celebrates the 10^th anniversary of BGCA's comprehensive health and wellness program, Triple Play, and builds upon more than 70 years of partnership between the two organizations.

Triple Play: A Game Plan for the Mind, Body and Soul is BGCA's proven health and wellness program. Since 2005, Triple Play has made more than 9.2 million connections with kids to share the importance of physical activity and proper nutrition through the program's three components that focus on mind, body and soul. The Coca-Cola Company helped launch the program 10 years ago in partnership with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

"Coca-Cola is honored to continue our longstanding partnership with Boys & Girls Clubs of America. We are committed to working together with government, business and civil society to solve complex issues facing our communities today. The Triple Play program helps millions of young people lead healthier, more active lives," said Sandy Douglas, President, Coca-Cola North America.

The Coca-Cola Company's extended commitment will aim to improve the overall health of Club members by increasing their daily physical activity, teaching them proper nutrition and helping them develop healthy relationships. In addition to financial contributions, the company encourages its employees to volunteer at their local Boys & Girls Clubs. This week Coca-Cola employees volunteered during National Boys & Girls Club Week at locations around the country to encourage healthy active lifestyles among Club youth.

"We share a special history with The Coca-Cola Company, whose generosity has spanned generations and helped so many kids achieve great futures," said BGCA President and CEO Jim Clark. "Their renewed support will enable us to continue bringing critical healthy lifestyle programming to youth across the country. We have achieved many goals working with Coca-Cola through the years and look forward to accomplishing many more over the next five years and beyond."

Triple Play is celebrating its 10^th anniversary this year thanks to support from The Coca-Cola Company and co-sponsor the Anthem Foundation. Triple Play is one of the most widely used programs in Boys & Girls Clubs.

About Triple Play
Triple Play: A healthy lifestyles Game Plan for the Mind, Body and Soul, was launched in 2005 by Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA) in collaboration with the Department of Health and Human Services and with support from The Coca-Cola Company. The goal of Triple Play is to encourage kids to eat healthier, become more physically active and increase their ability to engage in healthy relationships. Triple Play includes five program components, each of which serves between 20,000 and 500,000 youth annually. Celebrating its 10^th year, Triple Play has made more than 9.2 million connections with kids across the country. In 2011, the Anthem Foundation joined BGCA and Coca-Cola as a Triple Play sponsor. Learn more about the program at www.bgca.org/tripleplay.

About Boys & Girls Clubs of America
For more than 100 years, Boys & Girls Clubs of America (GreatFutures.org) has enabled young people most in need to achieve great futures as productive, caring, responsible citizens. Today, more than 4,100 Clubs serve nearly 4 million young people annually through Club membership and community outreach. Clubs are located in cities, towns, public housing and on Native lands throughout the country, and serve military families in BGCA-affiliated Youth Centers on U.S. military installations worldwide. They provide a safe place, caring adult mentors, fun, friendship, and high-impact youth development programs on a daily basis during critical non-school hours. Priority programs emphasize academic success, good character and citizenship, and healthy lifestyles. In a Harris Survey of alumni, 57 percent said the Club saved their lives. National headquarters are located in Atlanta. Learn more at http://www.bgca.org/facebook and http://bgca.org/twitter.

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SOURCE Boys & Girls Clubs of America