Fort Leavenworth community volksmarches for wellness

Service members and staff who work at the Military Corrections Complex were encouraged to slow down with their co-workers, family members and even dogs and connect with one another during a noncompetitive walk, fashioned after a German volksmarch, May 8 along the sidewalk around Trails West Golf Course at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. The walk-run was organized by the Army Corrections Brigade Wellness Program.

The event coincided with National Mental Health Awareness Month and National Correctional Officers Week. About 200 service members, civilians and family members from the ACB’s Midwest Joint Regional Correctional Facility Battalion (Corrections) and the U.S. Disciplinary Barracks Battalion (Corrections) participated in the second annual volksmarch.

Robin Collie, ACB Wellness Program coordinator and social worker, said the event was about connection and building shared experiences, and that the overall purpose of the event was to encourage staff and their families to slow down and enjoy a leisurely walk with others. Checkpoints were positioned along the route where volksmarch participants could engage in wellness and team-building activities.

“I heard nothing but comments of enjoyment from this year’s event and stories of shared experiences from across the various checkpoints — and that’s what this was all about,” Collie said. “The checkpoints focused on engagement — not selling, not signing people up, just building an enjoyable connection with our workforce. Following the route, which on its own is a wellness activity, (with its) environmental and physical dimensions, participants received a completion patch to thank them for participating and enjoyed food and games with their peers, family or friends.”

Representatives from the ACB Retention Team, Ready, Resilient (R2) Performance Center, American Red Cross and Armed Forces Wellness Center led activities at each of the checkpoints, and volunteers from the Association of the United States Army and United Service Organizations offered additional support and resources.

Collie said the volksmarch fostered community engagement with support organizations that help provide holistic health tools for the unit’s service members.`

“Working in corrections is challenging. The ACB Wellness Program acknowledges that and works to mitigate the impact of unique stressors by talking about them and working to be proactive in our approach to wellness,” she said. “For our pitstops we wanted to incorporate our community resources in a unique way that is focused on building that positive connection with our workforce. The hope is not only to take something away from the activity itself, but also to build trust with these organizations.”

Collie said the ACB Wellness Program aims to enhance organizational health and culture by ensuring access to and fostering interest in available wellness education, programs and activities, as well as identifying and reducing “barriers to wellness opportunities through collaboration, consolidation, and communication.” The volksmarch provided an alternative way to accomplish this mission.

“Rather than passively receiving information — we are out there walking, engaging, laughing and learning together — this active style can foster more meaningful connections and deeper understanding between us and the experience.”

Additional National Correctional Officers Week activities included a prayer luncheon May 9 and a brigade flag football game May 10.