Dear Poe Center Supporter:
The Poe Center is a non-profit organization that provides comprehensive programs and resources for healthy lifestyle education for all youth in North Carolina. The Poe Center specializes in developing programs for youth to address childhood obesity, physical inactivity, unhealthy food choices, tooth decay, tobacco use, drug and alcohol abuse, unintentional injury and teen pregnancy.
The following statistics are more than mere numbers; they can impact both and individual’s quality of life and have tremendous negative economic affect.
- It is estimated that the cost of unhealthy lifestyles, including lack of physical activity and inadequate consumption of fruit and vegetables, cost North Carolina $24.1 billion per year.
- Total annual health care costs in North Carolina directly caused by smoking are estimated at $2.46 billion.
- In 2004, the cost of teen pregnancy in North Carolina was $312 million. North Carolina is consistently ranked ninth in the nation for teen pregnancy rates.
- More than 350,000 Americans are hospitalized each year and 5,000 die from preventable food borne illness. (reported in USA Today, March 24)
Your help is critical! Through your support, the Poe Center can continue to make this vital health education programming available to youth across our state.
To be able to provide these valuable programs for all youth in North Carolina, the Poe Center must keep admission fees low. The Poe Center charges only $6 per student; however, it costs the Poe Center $15 per student to deliver our health education programs. In an effort to keep program costs affordable, the rest of the Poe Center budget must be raised from friends like you. We need your support now more than ever!
This year the Poe Center is pleased to offer our holiday giving package:
- “Give the Gift of Health Education” is the Poe Center’s new campaign to provide health education to children and youth in North Carolina.
- For every $15 you give a child will have the opportunity to attend a Poe Center’s health education program and a “Poe Child” will be placed on our holiday tree.
- An acknowledgement card will be sent to the individual or family you honor or memorize.
- In addition, we will place their name in our Virtual Honor or Memory Books on the Poe Center’s website.
Please consider making a donation to the Poe Center. Your contribution will allow us to continue to provide quality programs to youth that will enable them to make healthy choices and lead healthy lives. Thank you for taking time to consider a gift of health education for N.C. children.
On behalf of the Poe Center Board and Staff we wish you a happy holiday season and best health in 2011.
Regards,
Ann Rollins
Executive Director