HOULTON, Maine – One of the primary goals of the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians’ Health and Wellness Center has been to bring health screenings and the latest medical information to the tribal community.
On Saturday, June 28 that information was brought to a record number of participants at the tribe’s annual Health Fair.
“I was very pleased with how successful the health fair was this year,” Maliseet Health and Wellness Center Director Michelle Barrows said. “We had the best attendance for both participants and vendors with just over 290 attendees and around 40 vendor tables. This was the most well attended health fair event ever and it would not have been possible without our dedicated staff.”
The Maliseet Health and Wellness Center hosts a health fair each year to raise awareness about healthy lifestyles and just how important it is to receive certain screenings, maintaining a good diet and exercise and how prevention is key to healthy longevity.
“We had many new vendor tables as well as many regular tables,” Barrows said. “There were lots of giveaways and plenty of useful educational information.”
The fair featured a smudging ceremony, health screenings, fitness program activities, and included booths for domestic violence, education, Indian Child Welfare, Maine Breast and Cervical Health, Aroostook County Action Program, Wabanaki Public Health and Wellness, Maliseet Behavioral Health and Wellness and the Boys and Girls Clubs of America.
Some of those new vendors included the National Weather Service, Katahdin Woods and Waters, Houlton Adult Education, Andwell Home Health & Hospice, The Nature Conservancy, the ACAP mobile unit, Help Me Grow DHHS OCF. Many of those vendors have already expressed interest in returning next year.
This year’s event was held in honor of Jody (Tomah) Clark, a beloved tribal member and longtime Health Center employee who passed away earlier this year.
“Jody worked for the Tribe for 42 years and has always been instrumental in organizing this event each year,” Barrows said. “It was very different pulling everything together without her this year, but it meant a lot to all of us to do it in her honor.”
