PORTLAND, Maine — Starting Line, a local running studio in Portland, has created an event called "Maine Needs More Miles" that helps people get on the right track when starting a new goal this year and gives people a way to give back to the community.
"Community is the most important thing in a small town like Portland, Maine," a local runner at Starting Line said.
"We figured, why not start off the year on the right foot for both our community and give back to Maine Needs," Danielle Kroot, a co-founder of Starting Line, said.
Maine Needs is a local nonprofit that works to help those starting life over from scratch, domestic abuse survivors, asylum seekers, and those facing financial hardships by collecting clothing, hygiene products, household items, and other necessities.
Starting Line has partnered with Maine Needs to offer $1 classes Jan. 1 for anyone in the community. Not only that, but the gym also has a creative plan for raising funds on New Year's Day.
"We are going to be donating $1 for every mile that is logged on these treadmills," Kroot said.
Danielle and Jason Kroot opened Starting Line in 2019 and have been finding ways throughout the years to give back.
"We have a lot of people running for different reasons," Jason Kroot said. "We have someone coming in to run all five classes, who will likely run more than 20 miles, and we have some people coming out who have never been in the studio before. It's going to be an exciting day. Everyone running at their own pace, their own style, for their own reason."
"Doing things like this [event] is just helping people that are very deserving but maybe aren't in a place where they can have the things as we do," Zachary Jellis, a local runner and client at Starting Line, said. "If we have an opportunity as people that can, to give back to them and help them live a happier lifestyle, then I'm all for it."
Some runners said they are skipping the idea of a New Year's resolution and instead emphasized setting goals.
"It's important to set goals every day through the year, not just in the beginning, because then you don't always achieve them," Jill Bradbury, a local runner at Starting Line, said.
The New Year's Day event is a way to start the first day of the year by giving back to the community, whether you walk or run.
"You can go at your own pace, it doesn't matter. The whole point is to have fun and bring our community together," Danielle Kroot said.