The Partners Soda-free Campaign traveled to the Boys & Girls Club of Fall River's Camp Welch in nearby Assonet on August 15, 2013 to urge over 250 campers to reduce or eliminate soda and other sugar-sweetened beverages. This was part of an ongoing effort to educate children and adults that soda is one of the largest sources of empty calories. Sugar has no nutritional value and is a food that should be consumed only occasionally. Sugars from soda and other foods are also a major contributor to tooth decay. School Wellness coordinator Marcia Picard engaged the group in a discussion in which she pointed out that a two-liter bottle of soda contains 53 teaspoons of sugar. "Would you eat that much sugar if it was just dissolved in water?" she asked. When no one raised their hands, she went on to talk about the hazardous designation of trucks that carry soda syrup, a substance that can dissolve a nail. "Imagine what that will do to your stomach," she asked. Click here to see a 13-minute video of the presentation. Click here for photos of last year's campaign. For more information, contact School Wellness Coordinator Marcia Picard st 774-526-7149.

(Top row) Campers gather in the shade near the picnic tables to hear School Wellness Coordinator Marcia Picard from Partners for a Healthier Community talk about the hazards of drinking soda. (Row two) Ms. Picard holds a bottle of soda and then reads some of the hazardous properties of its contents. (Row three) Camp staffer Josh Blewitt comes out dressed as a tooth to illustrate the problems of tooth decay from drinking sugary beverages. (Bottom row) After Ms. Picard thanks the campers for their attention and they leave for other camp activities, she chats with Boys and Girls Club Executive Director Peter McCarthy.