“Keeping our minds aware of our short presence here, may we truly cherish each moment, as difficult as it may sometimes be, treating it, caressing it, loving it as though it were our first, last and only.” These words taken from the Sean O’Shea Foundation’s website hang eerily on the foundation’s Newsletter page. A freak traffic accident killed the 32 year old yoga instructor on December 28, 2006 and cut short the work he started with disadvantage children throughout the greater San Diego region. As noted recently in the San Diego Union-Tribune, O’Shea used yoga and nutrition as a “strong tool to help [at risk] children handle stress and anger and [give them] the same opportunities other children have.” It’s hard to imagine a person who can motivate underprivileged students in a run-down multipurpose room, but O’Shea had this gift.
Determined to keep his dream from dying with him, O’Shea’s friends and family started the foundation to help youth optimize their potential through yoga. Over three years, more than 1,000 students have gone through the foundation’s seven week program. It’s easy to undervalue this initiative, but one must consider the long term effects of this wellness education. Addressing proactively issues like juvenile obesity and an internationally declining state of nutrition awareness allows us an opportunity to remedy issues before they grow into problems. As an organization dedicated to the health and well-being of young people across the globe, Julian Krinsky Camps & Programs dedicates itself to giving students the skills to stay ahead of these potential health risks. Despite what you might have heard, the FDA has yet to approve laughter as a viable cure for type 2 juvenile diabetes. I apologize for dismantling this aged adage, but avoidance is the best medicine. It’s not as pithy as the original, but the results of nutrition and exercise will prove more rewarding. A healthy lifestyle trumps a good joke every time; I promise.
To read the full news article:
http://legacy.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20070101/news_1m1sean.html
