Health & Exercise Science Department’s HELPS program celebrates milestone

For 50 years and counting, a program founded at Wake Forest University has helped thousands of people live longer, healthier lives. 

Among them is Tom Mullen, the dean of the college from 1968 to 1995, who along with his wife, Ruth, works out three times a week with the Healthy Exercise & Lifestyle Programs(opens in a new tab) (HELPS), run by the Department of Health & Exercise Science (HES). 

“Ruth and I largely credit the HELPS program for why we are still living, at 96 years old,” Mullen said.

The Mullens joined HELPS staff, alumni and current participants to celebrate the program’s 50th anniversary with a series of events Oct. 16 and 17. During an open house at the Clinical Research Center off Deacon Boulevard, a fitness center with exercise equipment including weight machines, a running track and space for dance aerobic classes, they commemorated what they consider “50 years of healing hearts.”

The program started in 1975 as a cardiac rehabilitation initiative, founded by HES and focused on getting cardiac patients active. In 2003, it transitioned to HELPS, which takes a more general approach to overall healthcare.

Read more about the growth and evolution of HELPS at Wake Forest at news.wfu.edu.