Kellogg Seniors Stretch Into Fitness

Conversation eddied around Doris Hauser’s gentle flow of instructions.

The nine women finished their last lap around the large room and spread out floor mats for stretches.

“Now, gently reach forward …”

“I can’t do that!” exclaimed one.

“Of course you can,” said another. “If I can, you can.”

The exercise class at Kellogg Senior Center has been in motion for almost 14 years. Its members range in age from 67 to 87.

“I love this,” said Ella Churchill, one of the founding participants. “Friends tell me, I wish I were as lively as you are. Well, this is what gets me off the couch.”

She remembers the day her neighbor, Betty Maxwell, asked her over the fence if she thought senior women would be interested in a fitness class.

“Betty said she’d like to do something for older people,” said Churchill, who serves on the center’s board of directors. “I called two or three people. We’ve been going ever since.”

Maxwell said the class dates from about 1984, soon after she first moved to Kellogg. A Vista volunteer, she wanted to start worthwhile projects that women could adopt.

“I’d just had my daughter, so I was into exercising and losing weight,” said Maxwell, now victim services coordinator for the Women’s Center.

A busy schedule soon forced Maxwell to leave the class, but the project was off and running.

“I didn’t want us to disband,” said Hauser, whose sessions include everything from floor work to low-impact aerobics. She culls the various activities from books and tapes, as well as advice from a professional fitness instructor.

“I’m careful about health. I always say, do what you can, but listen to your body,” she continued. “I change the routine often, so people don’t get bored. They let me know what they don’t care for.”

The last remark elicited a burst of laughter.

“I hate exercise,” said Roberta Parker. “I come because of my rotten bones. If you use them, they’re healthier.”

“My doctor says, ‘you keep going to that exercise class. It’s one of the best things for you,”’ Lois Gilman agreed.

The payoff: after class, which begins at 9 a.m. Monday, Wednesday and Friday and can last as long as an hour and a half, the members sit down together for coffee and treats.

“We’ve all become friends,” Hauser said.

“We bonded like glue,” Maxwell seconded. “Even though I don’t go anymore, those women have seen me through some hard times. And they support the Women’s Center - bake cookies, take tickets, support our rummage sales. Nobody asked them to. They just did it.”

“The exercises make you feel better, but it’s the fellowship that means the most,” Churchill said. “I sure would miss it if I didn’t go.”

, DataTimes MEMO: Bekka Rauve is a freelance writer who lives in the Silver Valley. Panhandle Pieces appears every Saturday. The column is shared among several North Idaho writers.