KC Royals and Sun Life launch "Home Run to Health" fitness clinic for Kansas City youth
Outfielder Alex Gordon and pitchers Matt Strahm and Kevin McCarthy show kids the benefits of health and fitness

KANSAS CITY, Mo., June 1, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- The Kansas City Royals and Sun Life Financial U.S. welcomed over 100 local youth to Kauffman Stadium on Wednesday, May 31, for a health and wellness clinic to start the "Home Run to Health Powered by Sun Life Financial" program. Participants were children from the local RBI (Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities) chapters and the YMCA of Greater Kansas City. During the clinic, they learned about health, nutrition and fitness, with help from players Gordon, Strahm, and McCarthy, as well as MLB medical staff and coaches.

Royals outfielder Alex Gordon with youth from RBI (Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities) and YMCA of Kansas City, at Kaufman Stadium, at the P.L.A.Y. clinic and Home Run for Health program, powered by Sun Life Financial.

This clinic is part of the national P.L.A.Y. Clinic series (Promoting a Lifetime of Activity for Youth), organized in partnership with local MLB teams, the Professional Baseball Athletic Trainers Society, and The Taylor Hooton Foundation. As part of their partnership, Sun Life sponsors the Royals' P.L.A.Y. clinic, and introduced an expanded version of the program–Home Run to Health–which includes a two-week tracking period designed to ensure the youth are committed to the new healthy habits they learned.

"As an employee benefits provider, Sun Life is in the business of keeping people healthy," said event co-host, Lance Kappelman, Group Market Manager of Sun Life Financial U.S. "We are extremely involved in promoting diabetes awareness, and are thrilled to have this opportunity, through our partnership with the Royals, to get kids in the Kansas City community excited about health and fitness."

During the clinic, the children rotated through five different "stations," where they were taught different exercises and healthy eating habits. They concluded the day by signing a "player contract," confirming their commitment to the program, and were provided with tracking sheets to measure their healthy progress at home.

"The Royals love working with partners like Sun Life to bring activities like this to the Greater Kansas City community," said Ben Aken, Royals Vice President of Community Relations. "We are looking forward to seeing the progress over the next two weeks as the children incorporate their new healthy habits."

Sun Life actively participates in community service and events with a focus on health and promoting diabetes awareness and education. Other partners include the Boston Celtics, YMCA of the USA, the American Diabetes Association, and many grant recipients through Sun Life's Team Up Against Diabetes grant program. To learn more, visit www.sunlife.com/usdiabetes.

About Sun Life Financial
Sun Life Financial is a leading international financial services organization providing a diverse range of insurance, wealth and asset management solutions to individuals and corporate Clients. Sun Life Financial has operations in a number of markets worldwide, including Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Hong Kong, the Philippines, Japan, Indonesia, India, China, Australia, Singapore, Vietnam, Malaysia and Bermuda. As of March 31, 2017, Sun Life Financial had total assets under management of C$927 billion. For more information, please visit www.sunlife.com.

Sun Life Financial Inc. trades on the Toronto (TSX), New York (NYSE) and Philippine (PSE) stock exchanges under the ticker symbol SLF.

In the United States, Sun Life Financial is one of the largest group benefits providers, serving more than 60,000 employers in small, medium and large workplaces across the country. Sun Life's broad portfolio of products and services in the U.S. includes Disability and Absence Management, Life, Dental and Vision, Voluntary and Stop-Loss insurance. This includes the acquisition of the U.S. Employee Benefits business of Assurant, Inc., in Q1 2016. For more information, please visit www.sunlife.com/us.

Media contact:
Devon Portney Fernald
Sun Life Financial
781-416-7151
devon.portney.fernald@sunlife.com

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SOURCE Sun Life Financial