Library staff have offered high-quality health programming for years. When a local Blue Zones Committee was formed to help people make continuing steps to move more, improve what they eat and build social networks, staff immediately joined the group. Integrating Blue Zones principles into existing library health programming expanded the library’s reach, bringing in local tribal members to participate and leaders of five Native American nations to promote and enrich library programming.

Library staff expanded health programming to explicitly tie into Blue Zones principles. Programs have included Dinner on the Bricks, a yearly free health meal for the whole town which drew 835 attendees in 2019. Library staff provide healthy cooking demonstrations during monthly 3rd Friday Night events downtown, hold virtual walks and lead Purpose Workshops to introduce the intentional life. $13,000 in grant funds has been used to provide dance classes and create curated lists of ebooks on health topics.

In 2020, the county became the first certified Blue Zones Community in Oklahoma. Last year more than 150 adults participated in dance programs promoting healthy movement, and the state has since improved in overall health ranking. Grant-funded ebook collections circulate widely, and library staff themselves have integrated Blue Zones principles into their own lives, serving as examples in the community.