Over 1000 people participated in Happy Healthy Gorham (HHG) – Moving Naturally week, September 24-30. From pickleball to yoga, bike rides to trail walks, dance to spinning, the town of Gorham came together around positive behaviors and built community, friendships, and knowledge. Gorham businesses, Gorham Rec, and local residents offered free classes as a means to introduce or re-introduce people to the importance of moving.

The Gorham School District embraced the initiative. Elementary school staff incorporated dance and movement into each school day. Gorham Middle School students who take the bus to school were given the opportunity to walk from the high school to the middle school, creating a walking school bus. GMS students used a special phone app to calculate their daily steps, walking a whopping 7,946,799 steps during the week. The Interact Club at Gorham High School, a service-based organization affiliated with the Gorham Westbrook Rotary Club, participated as well when Gorham Yoga Company led all 93 members in yoga movements on the GHS athletic field.

HHG is a community-based health and wellness initiative with four, weeklong programs, each with a different theme. In November, HHG will highlight “Kindling Kindness” to demonstrate how kindness can foster positive living, helping to make Gorham the ‘Happiest, Healthiest Town in Maine.’

For more information see www.happyhealthygorham.org.