MOUNT PLEASANT — The Mount Pleasant Police Department, along with Familia Dental and Journey Disaster Response are joining with other health-based organizations to put together a Community Health Resource Fair 10 a.m.-2 p.m. on Saturday at the Lakeside COP House, 2237 Mead St., Mount Pleasant.
Health and wellness fair planned at Mount Pleasant COP House
At the fair, various health-oriented organizations will provide important information, community resources, services such as blood pressure monitoring, Medicare assistance and resources for senior citizens and veterans.
The free event will also have games, food provided by Ixtapan Mexican Restaurant and a raffle for prizes.
Every adult in attendance will receive a raffle ticket upon registering and every person will receive a meal ticket. When registered, every adult will receive a bingo sheet with all of the organizations present at the event; cross 10 of the exhibitors off of the sheet to receive an additional ticket. A third ticket can be awarded if one fills out the entire sheet. The winner of the raffle must be present at the time the ticket is called to receive the prize.
The main goal of the fair is to bring awareness and resources to the community. One of the resources being offered at the event is to help people be enrolled in Medicare, as open enrollment is coming up.
Almost half of all Hispanic Americans (48%) say that access to quality medical care is “a major reason” why some have worse health outcomes, and 27% cited access as “a minor reason,” according to the Pew Research Center. Additionally, 44% of Hispanic Americans say “more communication problems from language or cultural differences is a major reason why Hispanic people have generally worse health outcomes than other adults in the U.S.,” according to Pew.
“It’s important to give individuals the information so they can give the informed choice that suits them and their family members,” Mario Zuniga, senior community relations coordinator for Family Dental, said.
Other resources available include food stamp and employment training.
“What a lot of individuals don’t know is that, if they are on FoodShare (i.e. food stamps), they qualify for free employment training,” Zuniga said, “and even education that pays for their books and mileage to and from Gateway college.”
Other services will include blood pressure screenings, education on nutrition smoking cessation and samples of healthy recipes.