Health is focus of free fair
By Amy Lavalley Post-Tribune correspondent February 10, 2012 1:12PM
A health fair featuring screenings and information was held at St. Paul Catholic Church in Valparaiso, Ind., on Saturday, Feb. 4, 2012. | Michael Gard~For Sun-Times Media
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Updated: March 13, 2012 8:11AM
Jackie Moore and Eileen Brychell recently attended the St. Paul Catholic Church health fair, as they have in the past.
The women, who live in Valparaiso and are members of the parish, appreciate the assortment of health screenings available, as well as the chance to learn more about home health care.
“I like the idea that you can get your blood pressure and cholesterol and all that checked,” Brychell said.
This year’s fair, held by the church’s Ministry of Parish Nurses on Feb. 4, featured 36 vendors. Parish members established the ministry eight years ago, and the health fair followed a few years later.
“We wanted to give something back to our parish and our community, because we felt there was a big need for health care and prevention,” said Teresa Gantzer, who established the fair.
The free fair is one of the ministry’s biggest events, she said, and included outreach to area shelters and the uninsured. “I wanted to give the community what they needed,” she said.
Porter hospital offered many of the screenings, and visitors to the fair also could get vision and hearing tests, information on local health clubs, and brochures on long-term care facilities and other services.
“I don’t think there’s any service connected to health that we don’t cover,” said Phyllis Lyons, a member of the ministry.
That included the Visiting Nurse Association of Porter County. Hospice bereavement coordinator Michele Murphy Wise said the agency, which offers a wide array of services, has participated in the health fair every year.
The agency wants to be visible in the community and get the word out about the services it offers, including the Phoenix Center, which provides peer support for grieving children.
That’s not the only benefit for the VNA of taking part in the health fair.
“It’s networking,” Murphy Wise said, adding she can meet with agencies that provide complementary services, and refer VNA clients to them when necessary.
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