HEALTHY Harold is on a mission to spread healthy habits, and it’s about time Harold had a new set of wheels to keep the journey rolling, says Member for Tamworth Kevin Anderson.
Mr Anderson said Life Education’s Healthy Harold has been teaching kids health habits for more than 40 years, with generations of locals having happy memories about the friendly giraffe.
“Every local kid has happy memories about the day Healthy Harold came to visit and shared lessons about healthy eating, healthy living, and safety,” Mr Anderson said.
“Harold is an Australian icon, who has stuck his neck out for generations of local kids, teaching them everything from apples to attitudes.
“This year alone, more than 4000 local students have heard the good word from Harold, instilling good habits in them for the future.
“He’s an essential part of our children’s education which is why I’m kicking off the campaign for a new truck to get him from school to school across our region.”
Life Education lessons are delivered from Mobile Learning Centres, which in the north-west is a Pantech truck based in Tamworth, fitted out as a mobile classroom.
The bus travels to schools across the Tamworth, Gunnedah, Liverpool Plains, Walgett and Narrabri local government areas.
“Our local Healthy Harold truck puts in thousands of kilometres getting out to see some of the more rural and remote schools across the region,” Mr Anderson said.
“The Pantech truck has served Harold well, putting him in the fast lane to help kids, but right now, the truck is coughing up more smoke than a school science experiment.
“It’s time for an upgrade and I’ve written to the Health Minister to put our case forward for funding to ensure that Healthy Harold can continue to hit the road and teach local kids a busload of healthy habits.
“I’ll keep pushing the government to back Harold in our region, because I know he’s too important to be left broken down on the side of the road,” Mr Anderson said.
