Shawn Johnson wowed the world when she won her gold medal at the 2008 Olympics -- and she's doing it again right now on "Dancing With the Stars."
Yesterday, she did her best to impress a bunch of young girls -- including my daughter, Megan and her gymnastics teammate, Aimee -- as part of a promotion with Oscar Mayer Lunchables and the Woodward Camps:
Shawn Johnson's association with Lunchables is twofold: the company is currently holding a Willy Wonka type promotion, where 50 specially marked boxes of the product currently on the shelves contains a "Golden Ticket" that will entitle the winner -- AND A FRIEND -- to attend a week-long session at Camp Woodward, which my daughter is QUITE familiar with for their state-of-the-art gymnastics facilities. Shawn plans to spend some time this summer coaching campers there.
But Woodward's appeal isn't limited to gymnasts: The camp offers programs in all kinds of action sports, cheer and digital media -- in other words, there's something for everyone.
Additionally, the folks at Oscar Mayer and Woodward have partnered for the cross-country "Lunch Your Tummy Right Tour," that "aims to inspire kids to achieve success" (according to the company's press release).
Shawn and other Camp Woodward alumni (including BMXer Dennis Enarson and sports videographer John Considine) will make personal appearances at some of the tour's 17 city events, where they will share the stories of their success and how they achieved their dreams.
The press kit continues:
"As part of the tour, kids will also be encouraged to get active by climbing a giant inflatable wall and playing a series of educational games on an interactive bus."
Dates for the tour are:
- May 14-16: Memphis, TN at the Memphis in May Featival
- May 21-23: Charlotte, NC at the Speed Street 600 Festival
- May 29-31: Tampa, FL at the Taste of Pinellas Festival
- June 4-7: Nashville, TN at the Riverbend Festival
- June 11-14: Chicago, IL at Navy Pier
- July 2-5: Norfolk, VA at the Norfolk Harborfest
- July 24-26: New York, NY at the Quick Check New Jersey Festival of Ballooning
- July 30-Aug 2: Columbus, OH at the Ohio State Fair
- Aug 6-9: Madison, WI at the Wisconsin State Fair
- Aug 13-16: San Diego, CA at the San Diego Zoo
- Aug 20-23: Sacramento, CA at the California State Fair
I guess this is the part where I need to offer some disclosures: Oscar Mayer did not compensate me monetarily to interview Shawn Johnson and write about it - but they did provide me with the Flip camcorder I used to record the meeting.
That's not why I agreed to the interview. As the mom of a young gymnast, I JUMPED (flipped??) at the chance to meet one of the stars of the 2008 US Olympic team.
As for the product: Lunchables had a prominent place in our shopping cart when my daughter was younger. It was a quick and easy way to get her some protein and carbs for her light lunch or snack back when her palate was even worse (translation: pickier!) than it is now.
Do I think the product is the healthiest choice for a young child? Well, I didn't serve it to my daughter three times a day. But I had no problem utilizing Lunchables as a snack for my extremely active young gymnast. In the context of her overall diet (which has always been heavy on fresh fruit and good, lean protein), it did the trick.
I have a lot of friends who will be appalled when they read that last sentence. Sorry about that -- but that was my experience with the product, and I'm not ashamed to say it.
In conclusion: Here's more footage of Shawn Johnson, surprising the young girls who train at the local gym that hosted her appearance yesterday:
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