Annual health fair planned for Saturday
Published 7:37 pm Thursday, April 6, 2017
- ALL AGES: Carroll Worrell-Barnes, childcare services supervisor at Beaufort-Hyde Partnership for Children, passed out information at last year’s fair.
Saturday marks Beaufort County Health Department’s third-annual 411 Health Fair.
From 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., residents can visit the health department grounds on Highland Drive to view a variety of vendors, from Vidant Beaufort Hospital and Fitness Unlimited, to Beaufort-Hyde Partnership for Children and Washington Fire-Rescue-EMS, according to JaNell Lewis, BCHD human services planner and preparedness coordinator.
“We have over 31 vendors in attendance this year,” Lewis said. “It’s actually grown. Our goal is to every year get a little bit bigger.”
Lewis said the event is for people of all ages. There will be health screenings, including body-mass index, A1C levels and breast and skin cancer, for adults, as well as activities geared toward children.
“It’s the general public, all ages. Families are encouraged,” she said.
Entry to the event is free, but there will also be baked goods and lunch items available for purchase. Proceeds from those purchases will go toward Relay For Life, according to Lewis.
Lewis said most people enjoy the health fair, and organizers always welcome feedback from attendees to better serve the public in subsequent years.
“We’ve had lots of positive feedback,” she said.
The overall mission is to raise awareness for the public health services available for Beaufort County residents, Lewis said. Public health covers a wide range of services, so health fair organizers seek to educate the public about all the event entails.
“The first week in April is always National Public Health Week,” Lewis said. “(The goal is) to bring awareness to public health, all the multiple entities of public health, and how all these different partners work together for the community.”
The 411 Health Fair is slated for Saturday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., at Beaufort County Health Department, 1436 Highland Drive, Washington.