Lower Burrell’s new walking club will foster community connection, nature appreciation and health benefits, according to walking host Lindsay Taylor.
In early April, Lower Burrell’s Nature Neighbor Walking Club will hold its first meeting at Burrell Lake Park. An official date will be announced on the Lower Burrell Parks and Recreation Facebook page soon, Taylor said.
A poll to determine walking times also will be available on the Facebook page for the next week, said City Councilwoman Carley Logan, who is helping organize the club.
Taylor, who also works as a cognitive rehab specialist, hopes the club will be an opportunity for people to meet and connect with their neighbors.
“This will bring together people that wouldn’t necessarily have been together before,” she said.
Logan said the group will use a buddy system so no one walks alone.
“This is going to be more of a leisurely walk,” Logan said. “If a group of individuals wishes to walk at a faster pace, then of course they’re welcome to, but this is more of a community function than it is a fitness function.”
The club will meet weekly.
As the walking club grows, it could meet at other parks, but Taylor chose Burrell Lake to start because it isn’t too challenging of a walk and is ADA friendly.
“We’re really excited to see what energy the people, the folks in our community, bring and we’re really going to let that guide what our next steps are,” Taylor said. “My intention is to collect feedback that will help guide, move forward and how to grow.”
Originally from Springdale, Taylor said she has always loved nature, noting inspiration from Rachel Carson’s work in her hometown.
Carson, a Springdale native, was an American marine biologist and conservationist who wrote a book in 1962, two years before her death, exposing the dangers of pesticides. She, and the book, helped spark the modern environmental movement.
Taylor said the club is a way to tap into the healing benefits of the outdoors and bring awareness to the natural world.
The club is open to anyone and has garnered interest from several age groups, she said.
“I think that the more connected we are, the better we are,” Taylor said. “There’s really a lack of connection in our world today, and I think there’s really a lot of focus on our differences. So, this is an opportunity for us to all come together and recognize there’s a common opportunity, especially within nature. Nature doesn’t judge or discriminate.”
Logan said there is no registration or commitment necessary to join.
She said the idea for it came from last year’s annual Community Connections event, when she and the city’s parks and recreation department surveyed people’s interest.
“We had a list of things that we were interested in providing for the community and one of those was a walking group, and the number of tally marks that we received on a walking group were just astronomical,” she said.
She attributed the interest to residents wanting local connection.
“It just really enforces the idea that we are a community that focuses on our residents, and we want to make sure that our residents are given opportunities within the community,” Logan said.