‘Stronger Together’ community fundraiser supports trio of South County fire departments | South Berkshires

GREAT BARRINGTON — Firefighters and residents alike jumped, lifted and plunged into icy waters Saturday for a fitness fundraiser supporting local first responders.

The “Stronger Together Community Fitness Day” was held outside of the Great Barrington Fire Department, Black Bear Training and HUHT Wood Sauna. With a $30 suggested donation, the event featured three group workout sessions, a mobile sauna and cold plunge and raffles of goods donated by local businesses.

Megan Arthur-Sayers, head coach of Black Bear Training, thought of the event for years. It aims to support first responders by combining fitness activities with a fun, community-building event.

“The idea was just to get everybody meeting,” Arthur-Sayers said. “We meet our first responders on the worst day, so this is a good way to just meet your first responders on a fun day, and get them all working out together to show that we’re all the same.”

Participants, who ranged from town fire chiefs to kids lifting their first dumbbells, stayed after the workouts to mingle over coffee from Best Damn Expresso or take a cold plunge. 

Before the event started, they had raised $1,000 in donations and Arthur-Sayers said she is planning to keep donations open for another week. Profits will be split between the Great Barrington, New Marlborough and Monterey fire departments, which participated in the event. 

This is the first time the Great Barrington Fire Department has collaborated with another business owner for a public fundraiser, Chief Scott Turner said.

“I think this is a great idea all around,” Turner said. “I think bringing more awareness to health and wellness and fitness for first responders and the community is important and this could be good for recruitment.”

The workout catered to all athletic capabilities, with plenty of room for modifications, which allowed people with vastly different skills to work out and be together, something Arthur-Sayers said was important for the event.

“We’re just spending the day having fun and laughing together,” Arthur-Sayers said after leading the third class.

Matthew Wright stopped by the fire department for his second workout of the day before braving the cold plunge, which is good for muscle recovery, because he wanted to try a new gym while supporting the community.

“It’s really exciting and fun to try different gyms and to bounce around and see how different training and programming work,” Wright said. “Gym culture is really a special thing, but it can be super intimidating to get into.”

Andy Huh, owner of HUHT, and Arthur-Sayers previously collaborated at the beginning of the summer for a Black Bear Training member appreciation day. Both mentioned they were interested in finding a way to support first responders, which led them to host this event.

This is the first of what Arthur-Sayers said she hopes will be an annual community day promoting local businesses and raising money for first responders while exercising at any level together.

“We had a really good turnout,” Arthur-Sayers said, estimating around 50 people attended. “Considering it’s the first year, I’m excited to see what the following years bring.”