Women For Healthy Rural Living

Group programming encompasses a variety of initiatives designed to Connect For the Health of It, a 2024 initiative to help combat the epidemic of loneliness and isolation. Programs included our Book Discussion Series Banned Books, art programmingsix sessions with participants overall, Connecting Through Handcrafts and Art with a weekly Community Craft Circle, a monthly Mending Caf, monthly Soul Collage meetings, What Do You See art camp for children ages 8-11, and special workshops such as Mending with Patches, Sock Darning, Stab Binding Journal Making, and Creating a Felt Ornament. WHRLigig, a playgroup for children and their caregivers, commenced in February and met weekly, often at Milbridge Commons Wellness Park in good weathera partnership with Sunrise Opportunities Prevention Council. In late 2024, we hosted the local Acoustic Caf, bringing community members together to enjoy and create music. In 2024, Movement Programming included twice weekly Bone Builders osteoporosis intervention classes, Chair Yoga, Evening Yoga, Tai Chi, Zumba, and the introduction of a Walking Group. Day-long Women's Retreats, Connections: Nature, Inspiration, and Creativity, were introduced in 2024 with four art retreats held at the summer home of the American modernist artist John Marin.

Outdoor Women Lead strengthens women's and girls confidence in the outdoors and life through monthly Outing Club with educational hikes or canoe outings, OWLettea summer camp for girls ages 11 to 14, and family skill-building workshops, including Wilderness First Aid, an Orienteering Workshop, and a mother-daughter mapping program. We partnered with the Maine Island Trail Association for an outing club hike and the OWLette camp.

Milbridge Commons Wellness Park, a partnership with Maine Coast Heritage Trust, offers thousands of visitors each year opportunities for physical activity through the walking track and children's playground, nutritious food from our largest Incredible Edible Garden, connections to nature and one another. A shade canopy and Adirondack chairs were added in 2024 along with a Children's Discovery Center. Events at Milbridge Commons included the second annual Butterfly Festival, a self-guided spring event for children, and a summer scavenger hunt. WHRL maintains a children's Little Free Library at the Commons and introduced a Chronolog-Citizen Science monitory tool to track environmental changes.

Through the Elaine Hill Memorial Nursing Scholarship, we invest in a healthy future by supporting local students pursuing a nursing career. We awarded two $2,500 scholarshipsone to a new scholar and one to a returning scholar as the scholarships are renewable for up to three years.