BINGHAM — Exercise has always been a priority for Rose Marie Henderson. The recently retired 67-year-old swims three times a week, and now that the weather is getting nicer, she hopes to also get outside for walks.
But she admitted that sometimes she is too busy to get in the amount of exercise doctors recommend.
“I don’t always get my 10,000 steps in,” Henderson said on Thursday, referring to the American Heart Association’s recommendation of walking 10,000 steps daily or getting an equivalent amount of exercise.
But thanks to a new pedometer and walking shoes provided with the help of students at Upper Kennebec Valley Memorial High School, Henderson, of Bingham, said she has a new incentive to start walking more.
On Thursday she was the first area resident to get a free pedometer, which is used to track the number of steps taken, and a $50 voucher for sneakers at the Bingham Area Health Center. The health center is giving away up to 100 pedometers and 22 vouchers for sneakers that were bought with money raised by the students.
“The goal is to raise awareness for heart health,” said Courtney Mills, 19, a senior at the high school and a member of the girls basketball team. This is the third year that the school’s basketball teams have joined together for a Fill the Gym night aiming to bring the community together to support a cause.
The cause they choose to support is usually something with a connection to the community, said Lori Gordon, an education technician who has helped the students organize the fundraiser.
The first year, the students chose breast cancer awareness and raised $1,500 for the Susan G. Komen Foundation in honor of community members battling breast cancer. Last year they raised $2,300 for the family of Jillian Jones, an alum of the high school who was murdered in Augusta.
“We are a needy community and we need to support each other,” Gordon said. “We try and choose an issue that has affected local families, and this year decided to do cardiovascular health.”
Giving back to the community, even if it is in a small way, gives people a sense of pride and helps the community to have a better relationship with students, she said. This year the school raised $1,800 to buy the pedometers and vouchers for walking shoes that can be used at New Balance stores.
“It’s a good way for people to know more about a cause and to know that students care,” said Cody Laweryson, 16, a junior and a member of the boys basketball team.
The pedometers and vouchers will be distributed through the health center over the course of the next few months. The center is mostly looking to distribute them to patients with diabetes, many of whom have poor circulation and are more at risk for being overweight and can benefit from extra walking, said Rochelle Dumont, the practice manager at the health center.
“The hope is that they will get out and exercise more,” she said. “I think it’s a good incentive for them to do something healthy for themselves.”
Rachel Ohm — 612-2368
Twitter: @rachel_ohm
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