Every weekday at about 7:00 a.m., you can find a number of walkers at the Town ‘N’ Country mall. The venue is a great place for seniors to get some exercise, stay active and fit.
Moose Jaw senior Alice King-Rayner will turn 85 years-old this September and has been actively walking the mall every weekday for the last 27 years.
"Well, it's bug-free; it's air-conditioned. You can come in and take your coat off in the wintertime and walk around with no problem, and it does not cost anything,” she said.
Last year she hit another milestone, clocking in over three hundred kilometres over the course of the year.
The group that gathers together to walk at the mall are the remnants of the Moose Jaw Walkers that used to meet at the A&W before doing their two-kilometre walk at the mall.
Even though the club is no longer active, that has not stopped some seniors from taking their daily walks.
The Moose Jaw Walkers once boasted seventy members but overtime dwindled to sixty, and now with the club officially no longer active, there are only around six seniors that walk daily at the mall.
Alice became involved with the walking group shortly after moving to Moose Jaw in 1995. The family had purchased FasGas and Alice found herself with little to do early in the morning while waiting to open the gas station so she decided there and then to join the walking club. She has been walking ever since.
Other seniors often join Alice for the walk, sharing stories and conversations on their stroll. She says she truly looks forward to her walks in the morning. Her goal for this year is to walk at least one kilometre every weekday.
Alice believes that it is extremely important to stay active for both the good of an individual’s mental and physical health.
