The story was published in The Sylva Herald, April 1 edition
People scrambling to find clues in downtown Sylva found wellness in a fun and creative way on Saturday, March 21. It was wrapped in colorful care-packages and gifts from local businesses.
Nicole Kaysing with Balancing Wellness and Jenna Kranz of Uncomplicated Kitchen were the first ones to greet participants in the second annual Wellness Scavenger Hunt on March 21 at the Sylva First Methodist Church. They explained the rules as hunters walked through the doors. Hunters were given a brochure rife with riddles as clues to which businesses held the stamps.
When participants returned with all the stamps in their proper spaces, Kaysing and Krantz gave dozens of “raffle tickets” to the people completing the hunt. The tickets were placed in the box of the hunters’ choosing on the prize table awaiting the drawings that took place at 2 p.m.
Fusions Spa and Wellness, Snake Song Floral Design and Noon were welcoming scavenger hunters along with busy Saturday shoppers, holding conversations about wellness and the services they offered the community every day.
The Sylva United Methodist Church gymnasium was the Wellness Oasis where conversations about life insurance were answered by experts Lisa Van-Cott from Western & Southern Life and Jonathan Trantham with the Leazer Group.
Two massage chairs invited people to experience a few moments of relaxation at the hands of Tom Cooper of Zen Bodyworks Studio and Chris Mitchell of Euphoric Relief. Invitations to meditations and sound healing sessions were given from Peak Wellness Collective and Deborah Angiolina Billings. Options for telehealth therapy were offered by Tracy Webster at Graceful Growth Healing Center.
For younger guests and people in need of some doggy love, Westmoreland K-9 was there to talk about their dog training of shelter-rescued dogs to keep peace in homes of new dog owners.
Packets of Skittles were handed out in mass quantity by the Cullowhee Community Collective booth encouraging community through volunteer opportunities that would bridge the gap between college students and Cullowhee locals, addressing and assisting food insecure or lonely individuals that needed a safe environment for support.
Representatives from Journeys School for the Gifted and Talented were there to answer questions from the community about their creative curriculum designed to help students become well-rounded and connected individuals. Appalachian Mountain Health was offering information on their behavioral approach to common health problems and community resource needs.
“I was truly so pleased with the turnout. The energy, the openness, and the willingness to engage made it incredibly special,” Kaysing said.
