The Department of Indigenous Cancer Health team is proud to announce a new partnership with Tuscarora Athletics, Inc. to support the Indigenous SIPin project, which creates a wellness program wrapped around athletics and lacrosse to improve health behaviors related to beverage consumption. The project team worked diligently to culturally adapt the general Sugar Sweetened Beverage education curriculum to suit the needs of Native American communities with direct feedback and direction from local Native American community partners. Beginning with the Good Mind philosophy of the Haudenosaunee as the foundation of the curriculum, the text messages to be sent to project participants have been adapted to our target audience – Native American lacrosse players.
When we launch in June, the Indigenous SIPin pilot program will provide health education to the 18+ Indigenous SIPin Team at the Cornerstone arena in Lockport, NY. While the lacrosse team gathers to play each week, they will also receive free health education from the Department of Indigenous Cancer Health related to healthy habits and drinking traditional beverages. These lacrosse players will receive a $25 gift card to track their beverage consumption and respond to text messaging with our Indigenous Health team. To learn more about reconnecting with ancestral drinks and healthy beverage consumption please reach out to Corinne Abrams at 716-800-9417 or Corinne.Abrams@RoswellPark.org.