Working Out Together

BV Police Reaching Out To Youth Through Blueline Fitness Program

A new evening program being hosted by the Buena Vista Police Department is offering high school students a chance to work out, whether they’re an athlete or not.

The Blueline Fitness program, which formally started meeting in June, is a weightlifting program started by Officer John Snider with the Buena Vista Police Department as a way to encourage kids to be active and as a way to develop relationships with the youth in the community. Snider, who has been with the police department for 20 years, serves as the school resource officer at Kling Elementary School and is a coach for the JV football team at Parry McCluer High School.

“I want to emphasize that this is for everybody,” he said. “This is not just for athletes and it’s not just for gym rats. This is for anybody and everybody. Our goal is [that] they can come in and lift with us and see that we’re human as well. We’re not gym rats and we’re not power lifters. We’re just average, just the way they are, and it’s open to anybody. We’re not excluding anybody.”

Currently, the program has only a couple of regular attendees, though there are several kids who have stopped by, as well as members of the police department. Snider said that some PMHS graduates who are playing sports in college have stopped by as well.

“It’s a win-win,” he said. “We get to hang out with them, and of course they’re from the community as well, so it’s still community outreach.”

He also noted that the program is a good way for the officers to start connecting with any students who might be interested in becoming a first responder.

“It’s getting harder and harder to find first responders, so it’s a way for us to lay a foundation with some of these kids who might want to become a first responder and go into law enforcement,” he said.

There isn’t a formal workout regimen with the program, although if any attendees have something specific they want to do, Snider says that they can do that.

“If they want to work out specifically and need a partner, we’re there and we’ll do whatever they want to do,” he said. “If they kind of want to do their own thing, they’re more than welcome to do that. If an athlete misses their team’s lift, they can come in and get their lift in while we’re here. That’s fine with us. It’s open to anybody most times.”

Buena Vista Police Chief Wayne Handley is among the officers who come to work out with the kids who show up. He praised the idea, saying that he was looking forward to the program potentially expanding in the future.

“What I’m really looking forward to is when the school year starts and we can actually get into the schools when all the kids are back and encourage them to come out, even if they’re not athletes but just want to come out,” he said. “There’s a lot of social networking that goes on here that’s not on a computer. It’s a good opportunity to get out and get off the couch and do something.”

“It means a lot to the school and for Buena Vista, and that’s what we’re trying to do, is get Buena Vista back up to where it should be,” he added. “I want people to think of this area and they don’t think of Rockbridge, they don’t think of Lexington, they think of Buena Vista. Nothing personal against any of my colleagues in any of those other places, but that’s what we want.”

Currently, the program meets Monday, Tuesday and Thursday evenings from 6 to 7 p.m. at the Ramsey Center, though Snider says that hours may be adjusted after school starts. They also meet some Wednesday evenings. For more information, email Snider at [email protected] or call the Buena Vista Police Department at (540) 261-6174.