Want to be in a film?

Activate is creating an Active Living DVD to showcase our residents, parks, trails and activities in Martinsville and Henry County.

The next filming will occur on Tuesday, May 5th at the Uptown Spur Trail at 9:00 a.m. Meet at the Gazebo on Lester Street. This is being held in conjunction with Dan River Basin Association’s Tuesday Morning Stroll.

Bring your friends, your family, and/or your pets. Enjoy the gardens and artwork that adorn the .6 mile paved trail while helping us highlight how active our residents are!

For questions contact:
Jeannie Frisco
276-638-2523 Ext 331

Toolkit Participants Meet Milestones

Please join us in congratulating the following Toolkit Participants for reaching their 100 miles milestone during their first quarter of the program:

W. Jack Waters............533 miles

G.W. Fisher...................418 miles

Gladys Gravely........... 378 miles
Melissa Hall................ 370 miles
Kenneth Hairston...... 203 miles
Madaline Wells........... 115 miles
Lillian Perkins........... 109 miles

Way to go!!

Keep stepping your way to better health.

Kirkpatrick Honored For Service

In Martinsville and Henry County, a major project is presently underway: the development of the Smith River Trail System. This series of trails will follow the Smith River 45 miles from the base of Philpott Dam to it’s confluence with the Dan River in Eden, NC. In the past two years, five miles of the system have been completed and development on another two miles of trail will begin later this spring. The construction of these trails takes time, effort, and good volunteers. DRBA is very fortunate to have members that understand the importance of trails and wish to help bring them to fruition. One of those members is Wayne Kirkpatrick.

In the past year, Wayne has participated in every volunteer trail building event held by DRBA on the Smith River Trail System. Being the hard worker that he is, Wayne is usually the first volunteer to arrive at the worksite and the last one to leave. He has a can-do attitude and is always eager to try new things. When the Project Manager says “I have a crazy idea, but it just might work!” Wayne makes it happen- the next thing you know he has built an earthen staircase into the side of a steep hill with just a chainsaw and shovel. On another occasion, Wayne built an amazing six-foot-tall debris fence to deter motorized traffic from entering a trail. In fact, he enjoyed that project so much he built the fence twice- but that’s another story!

The bottom line is that Wayne is a person you can always count on to help at trail workdays and you know that he will do a good job, whether he’s installing signs, cutting trees, or simply picking up litter. That’s why we chose Wayne Kirkpatrick, as the recipient of DRBA’s first ever Golden Shovel Award for Trail Building Excellence. Thank you Wayne!

Participants Enjoy a "Tuesday Morning Stroll"

Shown above are (L-R) Regenia Manns, Jessee Shumate, Jeannie Frisco, and Bill Mitchell.

On a brisk morning this past month, walkers gathered to enjoy a "Tuesday Morning Stroll" with the Dan River Basin Association (DRBA) and Activate Martinsville-Henry County. While on a 2.6 mile walk at the Fieldale Trail, the participants learned fun facts about Easter eggs and competed for prizes with trivia questions.

Try your hand at this one: The first Easter Egg egg roll was held at the White House by what U.S. President? Do you know? Jessee knew the answer, it was Rutherford B. Hayes!

Also while on the walk, the participants learned about the history of Koehler. Below they are shown looking at sand dredges from the historic Koehler Concrete Plant.

Tuesday Morning Strolls are held the 1st Tuesday of each month. Join us on May 5th, as we visit the Uptown Spur Trail on Franklin Street in Martinsville. We'll meet at 9 am at the Gazebo. For more information, contact 634-2545.

Attention Drivers!

Who has the right of way?

The conflict between pedestrians and drivers is pervasive. Neither knows exactly who has the right-of-way and each think they do.

The current law of the Virginia Code specifies that drivers must “yield” to pedestrians.

Please respect walkers’ rights
Allow walkers to cross the roads safely.

Earth Day 5K Huge Success

More than 90 runners get off to a fast start at the Earth Day 5k on Saturday morning near the former Druid Hills Elementary School.

Erica Wingo was the top female finisher while Martinsville High School student Teryn Martin was the fastest in the men's competition.

The race was sponsored by Activate Martinsville-Henry County and hosted by Henry County Parks and Recreation, Martinsville Leisure Services, the YMCA and the Virginia Museum of Natural History.

Photo by Martinsville Bulletin

Most Important Steps You Will Ever Learn

Attention Walkers!

Be Smart. Be Safe. Be Seen.

Walk facing traffic.

Look left, look right and look left again before crossing.

Wear white or reflective clothing when walking at night.

Make sure drivers see you before crossing.

Cross at corners, using traffic signals and crosswalks.