What better place to share information than at a library? The Puyallup Church recently provided health information to the community at the Orting Library multi-purpose room.
"A health expo is a powerful tool to assist churches in their community outreach programs," said Kieth Noll, Puyallup pastor. "We're making friends with the public and inviting them to health seminars to create a cycle of friendship that leads to a series of spiritual meetings."
For the health expo, the church obtained a set of 16 wellness panels on the natural laws of health to place behind eight stations. At the stations, guests tested their glucose, cholesterol and blood pressure; found out about dry hot and cold water treatments; stepped up for the Harvard Step Test to measure pulse rate; measured their lung capacity; tried vegan and vegetarian food samples; sat down for a massage; and received computer-generated information on their age according to their health habits.
The town of Orting, Wash., neighboring the city of Puyallup, has a population of 5,000. The Puyallup Church is working to establish an Adventist company in this community. In addition to the health expo where 54 community members went through the health screening stations, the church also hosted a four-part nutrition seminar with Nessy Pittau, Washington Conference health director. These events set the framework for inviting the Orting community to a Revelation seminar in early April with John Freedman, Washington conference president.
Volunteer Sandra Latsha observes a guest's lung capacity test at the Orting Health Expo. (Heidi Martella)
Carly Sims, a student volunteer, and Marshall Merklin, Nelson Crane Christian School principal, take guests' health information and enter it into a computer to generate a person's age based on health habits. (Heidi Martella)
Health fairs are a great way to break down barriers in a community, and many people enjoyed a free massage at the Orting Health Expo. (Heidi Martella)
