ST. CLAIRSVILLE — Santa isn’t the only one providing for Belmont County juveniles during the holiday season.

CrossFit for Change provides physical workouts, healthy meals, and mental health counseling to area children on probation.

The CrossFit program is operated through the Belmont County Juvenile Court system and is located at O.V. CrossFit in the Ohio Valley Mall.

Thursday saw two of the 12 juveniles involved in the program graduate from the program.

Journey Russell and Raina Fletcher both graduated on Thursday and were both removed from probation.

“It’s something fun to do. It’s not the normal setting for probation. We actually work out with them. We put on workout clothes, sweat with them on the floor, and complete the workout with them,” program director Courtney Cook said. “They accomplish something with us as probation officers. So we’re not really probation officers for that hour we’re working out together, we get to kind of be a coach, mentor, or something else that they’re not used to.”

He added that he is proud of not only the two graduates but all of the juveniles who participate in the program.

Belmont County Juvenile Court Judge Al Davies said that the mission of the juvenile court is to do everything possible to promote healthy children and families.

“When I say healthy, I mean physically, mentally and emotionally. And we have multiple programs in our court that address that, but the CrossFit for Change program is probably the number one program that hits all those areas, and it’s been very, very successful for us,” Davies said. “We are one of the leading courts in the state of Ohio to have this program and successfully put kids in the program and have them graduate.”

Cook added that the program was created in 2022 and since the beginning has held a 90% attendance rate and an 80% succession rate.

He said that if a child doesn’t attend 70% of the classes, they are ordered to meet with Davies where he makes a decision if the child will continue the program or not.

Davies said that it’s a combination of both the probation department and himself to determine if they believe the child would be a good fit for the program or not.

“I give my probation officers the authority to make recommendations to me about kids that they may have on probation, and also, when I’m with kids in the courtroom that I think maybe they have a little bit too much time on their hands, or maybe they need to learn a little bit more about health and wellness, or maybe it’s going to be something that’s going to help them mentally and emotionally. That’s the child we’re looking for. Unfortunately, we have a lot of kids that fit that,” Davies said.

He added that the program would not be possible without the selfless dedication of the probation officers and O.V. CrossFit who make the program possible.