ST. JOHN VALLEY, Maine — Power of Prevention, a program of Cary Medical Center, has been working with many communities in northern Aroostook County to provide Partnerships to Improve Community Health (PICH) grant-funded signage for free physical activity locations in our towns.
With obesity rates 10 percent higher in Aroostook County than in the rest of the state, and with correspondingly higher rates of cardiovascular disease, respiratory disease, and Type II diabetes, something as simple as a sign indicating where adults and children can play or get some exercise for free can have significantly positive effects.
Caribou received signs to help bring visibility to the Crosstown Trail, a multi-use trail that makes an 11-mile loop and is a popular destination for hikers, runners and bikers.
The Caribou Recreation Department, which is a comprehensive recreation department with many indoor and outdoor activities for participants, has been investing a significant amount of grant funding into outdoor trails in Caribou over the last year or two, after identifying that some of the trails were in rough shape and conditions might be preventing residents from using them to the fullest extent.
Elsewhere, Van Buren received several signs to provide increased access and visibility to their Split Cedar Recreation Area for visitors and residents. The Split Cedar Recreation Area includes multi-use trails that are popular hiking, cross-country skiing and mountain biking spots, along with a waterfront area for canoeing and kayaking.
Eagle Lake received several signs that will help to bring visibility to their non-motorized trails. These unsurfaced trails are open year-round and allow hiking, mountain biking and cross-country skiing. Found behind the town office in a shady, picturesque location, the town requires no fee for their use.
Madawaska received signs that will help to bring visibility to a few of their many urban walking routes. Fort Kent updated a map earlier this year of their partly unsurfaced and partly paved downtown trails, the Fish River Greenway, which comprises a network of more than 5 miles of routes hidden along the Fish and St. John Rivers, and among the downtown businesses.
Funded by the CDC’s Partnerships to Improve Community Health initiative, Power of Prevention is working to promote healthy eating and active living to help improve health, reduce health disparities, and control health care spending.
For more information about Power of Prevention, PICH, or POP’s work in Aroostook County to support a variety of community health issues, contact Project Director Mark Shea at mshea@carymed.org.
