BAYFIELD – At the Pine River Library in Bayfield, patrons won’t just be learning about health from books this year: The library on Wednesday launched its first ever 2020 Health Initiative.
The program kicked off with a fitness class in the morning and a “Breaking Up with Sugar” nutrition event in the evening – just a taste of the health-related events to come. People might not normally associate “health initiative” and “library,” but to the Bayfield staff, it’s a natural fit and a way to respond to community interests.
“We try to respond to what our community asks for and requests,” said Brenda Marshall, the library’s assistant director. “In a rural area, we really do see our patrons as whole people and part of what we’re hoping to help people with is (health) education.”
The initiative events, which are open to the public and often free, focus on physical, mental and other types of health. They aim to build community and provide resources to help people meet their health goals.
Libraries around the nation are offering health literacy resources. Marshall, who is spearheading the program, got the idea for the effort while attending a Colorado Association of Libraries Stand Up for Health training in September, which focused on libraries as partners in health communities.
She used research-based approaches to design the program. For example, noticing habits and taking small steps to address them might be more successful habit-building strategies than setting huge goals.
Marshall hoped that people, herself included, can meet their resolutions with the help of their neighbors and new resources.
For example, people can ask about events or find workout partners on the 2020 Initiative Facebook page or make new friendships in classes. The public can find new classes through a community calendar on the initiative page, where they can also post health events in the Bayfield area.
For those interested in research-based health information, the initiative includes databases and health programming once or twice a month. In addition to the “Breaking Up with Sugar” event, the library will host a Habit Helpers workshop on Wednesdays from Jan. 15 to Feb. 5. The four-week class offers strategies and resources to help people stick with their new habits.
Future events could include meditations, flu clinics, heart health programming, a community-wide step challenge or adult CPR classes.
“I hope that they start to make connections with other people and that they find access to good, reliable information,” Marshall said. “I’m hoping they are encouraged and excited to find other ways to improve their health.”
The library began offering health classes, like yoga, Zumba and Full Body Fit, in response to requests from community groups who needed a place to meet.
At the Full Body Fit class, led by Body & Soul fitness instructor Tammy Williams, people have already begun to find the sense of community that the initiative hopes to nurture. It’s the kind of class where caregivers can bring their children, where attendees know each other’s names, and where women cheered each other on as hip hop or pop music blared.
“I came to work out, and I actually found a home base of these wonderful women ... that are just so supportive and help you in your health journey,” said Beth Morrow, a Bayfield resident.
Cheri Quinlan, also a Bayfield resident, said she found friends to garden with at the fitness class and a way to invest in her body and spirit.
Sara Fairly, another resident, said she needed both a free class and a class that allowed children to come with their caregivers to work out. The Full Body Fit class at the library offered that.
“I think anytime we can get together with people, other moms, it inspires you to work harder,” Fairly said.
“We’re kind of a health-based community here, and I think that the community will embrace (the initiative) entirely. ... We need it, and it’s wonderful.”
smullane@durangoherald.com
