Organizers of 'International Walk to School Day' event encourage kids to move and live healthy lifestyle

TAMPA, Fla. - Hundreds of kids and families at Grady Elementary School in Tampa celebrated International Walk to School day by hitting the pavement Wednesday morning on their way to school.

Organizers of the event, Sidewalk Stompers, work year-round to encourage more students to walk and bike to school. Their advocacy has helped double the number of kids walking and biking to school at Grady Elementary.

The big focus is to get kids moving and to promote healthy lifestyles. It’s also a chance to bring more awareness to drivers in school zones and to advocate for more road safety improvements for students 

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Tampa Mayor Jane Castor joined students and parents as they walked to school. Castor says a lot can be gained by simply walking to school each day.

"There are so many benefits in walking to school each day. It’s much better for the environment and more importantly for the health of our community to be able to physically get out there and walk and ride your bike and for our mental health to engage with other kids on their way to school just to be out in the community is a benefit," said Castor.

Grady Elementary will be the site of a new street mural crosswalk as part of Castor’s Crosswalk to Classroom program. The colorful crosswalks are designed to give a visual reminder to drivers that they’re in a school zone and need to slow down and watch out for students.