Over the last few months, literally thousands of boys and girls from across North America have participated in the Hershey Youth Track and Field Program. On Thursday, Aug. 5, six youngsters from Maine, including three from Aroostook County, will travel to Hershey, Pa. to participate in the North American Finals of the Hershey Youth Track and Field Program, the largest youth program of its kind in the United States and Canada.
Staff photo/Kevin SjobergKathy Mazzuchelli gets ready to sound the starting gun prior to a race at the June 22 district Hershey Track and Field meet held at Caribou High School. Mazzuchelli will be making her eighth trip to the North American Finals in Hershey, Pa. next week, joining six athletes from the state and their families.
For 33 years the Hershey Track and Field Program has worked to provide quality recreation and school programs where children have fun and are introduced to physical fitness through basic track and field events such as running, jumping and throwing. And while competition is important, the root of the Hershey program according to Caribou Superintendent of Parks and Recreation, Kathy Mazzuchelli, who has been involved with the program for 31 years, is encouraging kids to be the best they can be.
The Hershey Food Corporation adopted the program in 1977 and has expanded the program to every state as well as every Canadian province and territory. The program begins at local recreation departments or in school physical education classes. Eventually participants move through local meets, district meets and eventually state and/or provincial meets in each of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the 10 provinces and three territories of Canada. The American states and Canadian provinces and territories are divided up into eight regions, according to Mazzuchelli.
Maine is in Region Six which is comprised of all six New England states and all the Atlantic provinces. Once every state and province has had their state and provincial meets scores are compared and regional teams formed. On Thursday, Aug. 5, Mazzuchelli will be making her eighth trip to the North American Finals along with County athletes Brandon Theriault of Fort Kent, Kolleen Bouchard of Houlton and Molly Anthony of Bridgewater, and the three other Maine athletes who will “will travel to Hershey and enjoy four days of fun, experience great programs, meet some great track and field athletes and participate with hundreds of other youngsters from across North America” in the North American Finals of the Hershey Youth Track and Field Games, according to Mazzuchelli.
She indicated that the most important part of the meet is allowing the youngsters to experience the competition and to know that everyone comes from somewhere — communities large and small all across North America.
“But it is what they aspire to achieve that allows them succeed,” she said.
“It is so geared to allowing kids to unwrap their potential.”
