Stride For Health Program Mixes Exercise, Fellowship
It cured Roberta Stehr’s carpal tunnel syndrome and fixed her sore knee. It helped lift Jan Kendrick’s depression. Others have lost inches, tossed their canes and can now walk tall.
It’s not a miracle, but all involved agree it is a blessing.
The Stride for Health program at the First Church of the Nazarene on Country Homes Boulevard provides upbeat, low-impact exercise classes six days a week.
Though the classes are filled with senior citizens, the courses are open to anyone, regardless of age or religion. Sessions are Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 9 to 10:30 a.m., and Tuesday and Thursday from 5 to 6:30 p.m. A Saturday morning session is offered during the school year.
And best of all, they’re free.
“All I ask is that they bring juice once in a while,” said instructor Rhonda Knutson. The church donates its gymnasium and exercise bicycles for use during the program.
Knutson, 62, started the program September 14, 1997, with 15 people. After a February story in The Spokesman-Review, the enrollment number leaped to 270.
“If attendance can jump that much after one story, you know there must be a real need out there,” Knutson said, greeting each person with a hug as they walk in the door. Her goal is to get churches around Spokane to start similar programs. The only stipulation is the sessions must be free.
Class begins with a prayer and an update on the health of class members missing that day.
“The unique thing about this exercise class is the people - they really care. It makes you want to come back,” said Mary Jones, who drives out three times a week from Deer Park. “When my husband went for surgery, it helped to know all these people were praying for him.”
Knutson starts each session with a 15-minute, all-muscle warm-up.
“I really focus on deep breathing. As we get older, we tend to get crunched,” she said, demonstrating by rounding her shoulders, “and to lose oxygen. It’s important to stand up straight.”
As class members follow Knutson’s lead, making small circles with their outstretched arms, Knutson is careful to point out which exercises are OK for those who have undergone various surgeries.
Her thoughtfulness does not go unnoticed.
“Rhonda really cares about people,” said Margaret Severson, a member of Fourth Memorial Church. “A big family is what we are.”
“I’ve never seen a group so willing to take in strangers,” added Christine Swain, 84. “Everyone is so friendly and nice, and the exercise makes you feel so good. I haven’t missed a day!”
The class moves into exercises with hand weights and then step aerobics. People who don’t feel up to those challenges are encouraged to walk around the gym. Chairs line the wall for those who need a little breather between laps.
When Dolores Skarka started the Stride for Health program five months ago, she walked with a cane. Now her husband Harry beams as he watches her cruise by at a good clip.
“Her doctors are really proud of her,” he said, clad in a blue and white “Stride for Health” T-shirt with his name printed on the back. “This program is really important to a lot of people.”
For the Skarkas and others, Stride for Health is the perfect mix of exercise and fellowship.
As Steve Maddox, 63, put it, “It gets me up in the morning and gets me goin’, but the people keep me comin’ back.”