West Coast Berbice women who participated in a health and fitness programme organized by the Guyanese Families Unite in Service and Education (GuyFuse) have expressed satisfaction at the experience gained.
During their graduation ceremony, the women said the programme has helped to raise their self-esteem and make them more health conscious.
The sessions were held at Experiment Bath, West Coast Berbice and conducted by Peace Corps volunteers; Krista Brooks, Beth Bai, Skye Stauffer, Michelle Potts and Jackie Marzan.
The women thanked the volunteers for their patience and effort in helping to change their lives.
They also expressed gratitude to the president of GuyFuse, Valini Yacoob for making the programme possible.
The six-week “new and improved” exercise sessions featured aerobics, yoga and meditation classes. The volunteers also held interactive discussions on various health topics like diabetes, hypertension, cholesterol, cancer, arthritis and panic attacks.
Yacoob said 25 persons, including males enrolled for the programme but not everyone managed to complete it.
She was pleased with the co-operation from the participants as well as the volunteers and thanked them for making the programme a success.
According to her, “The Peace Corps volunteers demonstrated how simple exercise moves and breathing techniques can make a big difference in managing health issues and have self-healing…”
She said GuyFuse would be conducting another programme next May and encourages the community to join.
The volunteers said they enjoyed working with the women and that they too have learnt a lot from them.
They encouraged the participants to keep on exercising and eating healthy even though the programme is over and to share what they have learnt with others.
Also present at the graduation ceremony was regional chairman of Region Five, Bindrabhan Bisnauth who congratulated the women for completing the programme.
He also commended GuyFuse and the volunteers for the good work and said his office would be willing to offer any assistance they need.
