Fitness Day runs through Mineral County

Laughs and cheers could be heard from the lawn of the Mineral Community Hospital Saturday morning. The excitement was from the first annual Fall Fitness Fun Day, hosted by the Mineral Community Hospital Wellness Program.

On the lawn, local children played in various kids’ games. Hospital employees Wade Holden and Barb Jasper organized the kids’ games.

The local kids enjoyed a three-legged race, balloon and egg races, potato sack races and some hula hooping.

“Lots of eggs didn’t survive, but everyone else did,” Clinic Manager Holly Blaylock joked after the egg race.

With broken eggshells scattered on the grass, local brothers Carter and Jacob Jasper competed against each other in most the races.

The sibling rivalries continued between sisters Krystina and Kylee Thompson, of St. Regis.

The two girls also raced each other in a friendly competition.

The kids’ games brought out the best in young Molly Patko, who won the potato sack race. Nine kids played all the games.

Blaylock said the purpose of the first annual event is to get the community more active. Besides the kids’ games, people met at the Superior Elementary parking lot Saturday morning for a 1K, 5K walk.

Locals also met at the Vista trailhead in Superior for a morning, guided hike.

While people walked and hiked in Superior, St. Regis hosted a mountain bike ride. For the ride, people met at the Super 8 parking lot in St. Regis.

Moring walks were planned for Alberton and DeBorgia, but not enough people turned out for the event so both towns cancelled the walks. Blaylock said she hopes the first annual event grows over the years and more turn out through out the county.

Along with the Fall Fun Fitness Day, Blaylock said she is looking into an organized snowshoeing event in the wintertime as ways for people to stay active in the cold weather.

Blaylock also wants to organize a trip to the Bloomsday race in Spokane next year, through the Wellness Program.

“It starts with little health challenges,” Blaylock said of getting people moving. “That business could encourage employees to do.”

While keeping people active all year, Blaylock wants to keep the Fall Fun Fitness Day an annual event.

The fitness day is free to the public and so are the smoothies and health snacks that hospital employees handed out during the fitness day.

Hospital employees also handed out a community health and wellness resource guide. Those who showed up for the Fall Fun Fitness Day walked away with a binder full of a variety of community resources for wellness.

The resource guide offered wellness challenges, food pyramids, maps for surrounding trails, tip sheets, health steps, game suggestions, snack lists and other health related information.

The resource guide was organized with tabs for each month to keep people active and healthy all year long.

Blaylock said the resource guide has new trail maps for the area. Blaylock said one new trail starts at the courthouse in Superior and goes up Flat Creek.

“Movement is good for most any chronic illness,” Blaylock said of the importance of staying active.

The resource guide combined information from the school, extension office, Forest Service and hospital and clinic.

The Wellness Program, which put on the Fall Fun Fitness Day, started back on May 18. The program started with lectures on yoga, walking, running, water aerobics, hiking and core strengthening.

Now the Wellness Program at Mineral Community Hospital is expanding to events like the Fall Fun Fitness Day.