Rexburg mayor joins middle-schoolers in annual Zombie Walk for a cause
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REXBURG – Rexburg Mayor Jerry Merrill was at Madison Middle School Thursday with cuts and blood on his face and a tattered suit.
He was decked out in a Halloween costume as part of the school’s annual Zombie Walk. The event is part of the school’s Pacer’s program, a walking and jogging curriculum that promotes exercise and a healthy lifestyle. Students get tokens for every lap they make around the field.
The tokens result in points, and they’re awarded for the number of points they accumulate throughout the school year at a special celebration.
The Zombie Walk started last year, and Merrill got involved as part of the Blue Cross Foundation’s Mayor’s Walking Challenge. Mayors who participate are invited to walk at least 10,000 steps every day in the month of October and win $1,000 for a local organization that encourages healthy behavior.
This is Merrill’s ninth year participating in the Mayor’s Walking Challenge. He’s provided funds for Madison Middle School in the past, and this year, he wants to help P.E. teacher Debbie Miles get ski equipment so students can learn to cross-country ski.
“She wants to take kids to the cross-country park (at Teton Lakes Golf Course) and rent skis and boots and teach them how to cross-country ski,” Merrill says.
Some of the special needs students who can’t walk sit on scooters at the park, and he’s hoping there will be enough funds left over to get new scooters as well.
“If I walk with kids and I walk in a costume, I get bonus points. So hopefully I can earn enough money to get the scooters that she needs,” says Merrill.
The last two years, Merrill has been saving the funds to put towards a merry-go-round at Smith Park for kids in a wheelchair. The city will be installing it soon.
Students were smiling as they came dressed in costumes for Thursday’s event. Many students shook Merrill’s hand and talked with him at the school. Miles is grateful for his involvement and says his participation makes the event particularly memorable for the kids.
“His example is great for our kids and for the community,” Miles says.
