Beaufort County residents made health their priority Tuesday afternoon, as part of Beaufort County Community College’s inaugural Health Fair.

The event, which included 22 health-related booths, information, free screenings, massages, health consultations and a children’s bicycle rodeo, drew a large crowd — with around 150 people counted so far at the halfway mark, according to Julie Crippen, BCCC coordinator of special projects.

Crippen said grant money from Kate B. Reynolds Charitable Trust and MDC has made aspects of the Healthy Communities Initiative possible at the community college, and other partners were interested in joining the initiative.

The idea behind the grants is to spread health initiatives throughout the whole community, not just at BCCC, Crippen explained.

“Now we have the very young to the very old covered in Beaufort County,” she said.

Representatives from Vidant Beaufort Hospital were also on hand to provide free screenings for body mass index, blood pressure, blood sugar and cholesterol, according to Pam Shadle, manager of marketing and public relations.

Shadle said about 15 employees attended the event Tuesday, including a nursing student from the community college.

At the end of the screening stations was another table for health coaching. Two wellness experts talked with visitors about their screening results and provided information on how they should proceed.

“I think it’s a great place for people to learn how important their numbers are,” Shadle said. “We can coach them through what to do.”

Gerardo Alvarez, a BCCC student and president of the Student Government Association, said he found the Health Fair to be helpful because he hadn’t been to the doctor for a check-up recently.

“I lost weight,” he laughed.

Alvarez said he probably would not have taken the time to make a doctor’s appointment, but the Health Fair made it convenient for him to walk in and undergo screenings.

Crippen said BCCC tries to foster all aspects of a student’s health — mental, physical and academic. The Health Fair offered a variety of booths, from individual medical care to family health and better eating, to do just that, she said.