HERMON – Hermon High School, Bucksport High School and Leonard Middle School hosted Challenge Days recently. Hermon and Bucksport held Challenge Days for sophomore classes, while Leonard Middle School offered the program to its eighth-graders.

Challenge Day exposed the students to positive way of living. The nonprofit organization Challenge Day, featured on the “Oprah Winfrey” show, creates connections and support among participants and inspires them to live in an environment of compassion, acceptance and respect.

The program encourages students to notice, choose and act and to be a force for positive change in their own lives and the lives of fellow students.

The students and volunteer adult facilitators took part in a series of games, activities, group discussions, icebreakers and trust-building exercises to learn how to break down the walls of separation and create new levels of respect and communication with peers, teachers, parents and one another.

One Hermon High School student wrote, “My life is completely different. I have learned to respect people for who they are, and I now know what some of my classmates have gone through, and what I can do to help them out when they need some compassionate advice.”

Another Hermon student stated, “I feel very lucky that my school offers Challenge Day.”

The value to the school is evident, according to Hermon High health teacher Shelley Gavett.

“Because of Challenge Day, our school is more accepting of individual differences, and there is a renewed sense of support and compassion for others,” she said. “Knowing that Challenge Day can be a life-changing experience for some is very rewarding and a program we certainly want to continue.”

Acadia administrator of community relations and development Alan Comeau said, “The Acadia Hospital has a strong focus on youth wellness, and bringing Challenge Day to Maine students is a priority for us.”

“This is our ninth year of coordinating Challenge Days, and recently we became a Circle of Change, which signifies the extensive network we have created,” he said. “In fact, this year alone more than 800 students and 150 adults will have experienced Challenge Day.”

Challenge Day is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the positive transformation of social forces within schools and communities through the power of love, compassion and tolerance. To learn more about Challenge Day, visit www.challengeday.org.