‘Good Morning America’ returns to A.L. for 3rd visit
Published 9:50 am Tuesday, October 13, 2009
ABC’s “Good Morning America” will broadcast live in Albert Lea for a third time Wednesday morning. The airing will be at the Fountain Lake Park gazebo for a final segment on the AARP/Blue Zones Vitality Project.
Weekend anchor Kate Snow will host the segment, and the public is invited to show up at the site by 6:30 a.m., said Amy McDonough, associate state director of communications for AARP. Signs with the full name of the Vitality Project, names of walking school buses or names of walking moais are welcome.
Taping will take place between 7 and 8 a.m. and will be aired live on the East Coast, McDonough said. Locally, the segment will air during the 8 to 9 a.m. hour. The two-hour show typically airs from 7 to 9 a.m. daily.
The segment will focus on what people can do to stay healthy in the winter, she noted.
The show’s crew will also film at the Vitality Project celebration tonight at Albert Lea High School. Earlier that day, crews will revisit with the Bob and Sue Furland family and follow a walking school bus from Hatch Bridge along Fountain Lake.
The segment follows earlier segments in July and September.
In July, the crew interviewed the Furland family, stopped at Trail’s Restaurant to talk about healthy menu changes, visited with a volunteer and followed a walking moai around Fountain Lake. There was also a live segment from Brookside Education Center with weather anchor Sam Champion.
In September, crews filmed Blue Zones founder Dan Buettner talking about healthy breakfast options, and community members brought breakfast dishes for a potluck.
Through the different stops, the crews caught a glimpse of several portions of the Vitality Project, including personal changes, restaurant changes, and the importance of volunteering, connecting with others and physical movement.
Project leaders announced in January that Albert Lea was chosen for the project, the first of its kind. It aims to make Albert Lea residents healthier by making simple changes to their lifestyles and environments.
The pilot portion of the Vitality Project concludes at 7 p.m. today with a ceremony at the Albert Lea High School auditorium, when project leaders are expected to talk about the successes of the project and to reveal plans about continuing the initiatives in the future.
A crew from “Nightline” will be at the event, along with corporate leaders of major sponsors AARP and the United Health Foundation.
The event begins at 7 p.m.