It was an eventful night on Thursday, May 8, for those attending the latest installment of Edmond Town Hall’s “Newtown Talks: Conversations on Culture, Society, and Change” speaker series.

The event featured clinical social worker Steve Gross, who had audience members dance, high five, and play games as a way to kickstart their journey to embracing fun.

The Life is Good Playmaker Project is a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping kids heal from childhood trauma. Gross, who is the founder of The Playmaker Project, has held engaging play-based trauma interventions for children all over the world since his early twenties.

Now with over thirty years of experience, Gross learned that he can help children better work through their trauma by providing support and resources to the adults in their community. This idea of encouraging adults to embrace having fun drove much of his Thursday event.

Gross noted how people have gradually become more anxious and stressed over time, citing American Psychiatric Association’s 2024 Mental Health Poll that 43 percent of American adults feel increased anxiety compared to the previous year. This ties into the nationwide “loneliness epidemic,” as Gross also cited a 2023 report from the US Surgeon General stating loneliness is as deadly as smoking 15 cigarettes a day.

It is because of this data and more that Gross said being able to have fun is invaluable. He pointed out there are challenges to having fun, especially for those who are anxious and lonely, but said that intentional and carefree play is medicine.

“It’s medicine for us [adults], too,” Gross said. “Life is too important to take seriously all the time.”

He kickstarted everyone’s journey to having fun by leading them in a routine to Justin Timberlake’s “Can’t Stop the Feeling!”

Gross also encouraged everyone to play “the floor is lava,” a game where players pretend the ground is made of lava and have to avoid touching it at all costs. He rolled out a “lava” mat on stage with marked-out “rocks” on it that people could hop on for safety. Whenever someone crossed the mat and felt a little unconfident, Gross held out his hand and helped them jump across.

Newtown residents Lee Shull and Suzy DeYoung took the stage after Gross’ presentation and asked questions they prepared for him in advance. They also asked Gross questions from the audience, who could submit questions during his presentation.

The event ended with everyone singing the “Yellow Submarine” by The Beatles.

Kind Works Executive Director Cody Foss spoke briefly before Gross took the stage, speaking on the power of kindness and its ability to bring people together. The nonprofit organization does this through educational programming, installing murals, their drop-in volunteer art studio, and selling products that spread messages of kindness.

To that end, Kind Works representatives sold kindness tokens in the main lobby of Edmond Town Hall for the duration of the “Newtown Talks” event.

Reporter Jenna Visca can be reached at jenna@thebee.com.