Bayview-Hunters Point is a vibrant community - one of the most diverse in San Francisco, and home to Monster Park and glorious views of the East Bay.
It also is home to higher rates of infant mortality than other city neighborhoods, one of the highest rates of asthma, especially among children, and lower rates of exercise and healthy eating.
To help increase awareness of these health disparities, UCSF Children's Hospital on Sunday, Aug. 13, will cosponsor the 5-mile Stadium to Stadium Run/Walk, which will travel up 3rd Street from Monster Park (Candlestick) to AT&T Park. Start time is 8:45 a.m.
Entry fee for the run is $25 by pre-registration;
$30 on race day.
UCSF team check-in will be held starting at 7 a.m. at the
Mission Bay campus surface parking lot.
Online registration is available
here.
UCSF walkers get free parking and rides to start of race. |
The event, a partnership with the Mayor's Office to promote health in Bayview-Hunters Point, is hosted by San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, Supervisor Sophie Maxwell and ultramarathoner Dean Karnazes, and is cosponsored by the hospital, the Bay Area Sports Organizing Committee and a host of other local sponsors.
"Kids in the Bayview-Hunters Point area are much more likely to have asthma, much more likely to be battling obesity, and adults are much more likely to be diabetic, than in other parts of the city," said Fred Blackwell, director of the Mayor's Office of Community Development, which is organizing the event.
"We wanted to do this to engage the community in something fun and interesting," Blackwell said. "There are a lot of marathons and parades and walks in San Francisco, but few of them go down 3rd Street."
Blackwell said an athletic event seemed like the perfect way to raise awareness of health issues in the southeastern sector of the city, especially among the neighborhood's children. "We want to encourage residents, especially kids, to participate in these kinds of activities on an ongoing basis," he said.
Proceeds from the event will benefit sports, health and educational programs for children - such as Neighborhood Hockey Team, Bayview Youth Health in Action, Freedom Schools and the Southeast Nutrition Project - in San Francisco's southeast neighborhoods.
Education about healthy diet and exercise will be the focus of a booth at the "Keep It Moving" health fair at the conclusion of the race at AT&T Park. The display will focus on the importance of car seat safety, nutrition and proper diet, and developing healthy exercise habits.
"I am really excited that we will spend the day with the Bayview-Hunters Point community to raise awareness about important health issues," said Roxanne Fernandes, executive director of UCSF Children's Hospital. "These families and their children are a part of the UCSF Children's Hospital community, too. We are committed to partnering with them and with the city of San Francisco to improve health in their neighborhood."
According to a July 2006 Department of Public Health report, titled "Health Programs in Bayview-Hunters Point and Recommendations for Improving the Health of Bayview-Hunters Point Residents," the community is challenged by a variety of factors that result in poorer overall health.
The report states that "Bayview-Hunters Point residents are hospitalized more than residents of other neighborhoods for almost every disease, including asthma, congestive heart failure, diabetes, and urinary tract infections.
"Ten percent of the total population suffers from asthma, including 15.5 percent of children and youth in the area," the report says. "The average asthma rate of African-Americans nationwide is 6.9 percent, while for the entire population it is only 5.6 percent."
Lack of access to healthy foods, inadequate transportation, lack of exercise facilities, and violence all serve to restrict residents' ability to exercise and eat healthy foods - contributing to higher rates of a variety of diseases, including diabetes and heart disease.
The racecourse will start at Monster Park and travel to Gilman Avenue; to Arelious Walker Drive; to Carroll Avenue; to 3rd Street; to Mission Rock Street; to Terry Francois Street; to 3rd Street; and will end at AT&T Park. There will be water stops every mile, and free refreshments will be served at AT&T Park.
