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Last Wednesday, crowds gathered at the Kirbo Center for Memorial Hospital and Manor’s community health fair. Multiple vendors had tables and booths set up, offering health information and resources to attendees, while Memorial and Southern Regional Technical College had booths offering services such as lab work. According to Memorial Hospital, there were 107 participants that day. Attendees who received blood tests at the fair had the results mailed to them a few days later.

In a statement to the Post-Searchlight, Memorial Director of Development Jamie Sinko said, “Thank you to all our vendors and everyone who came out to participate and made this event a success. This was our first big health fair since COVID and we were happy to have had 107 people come through. We hope to collaborate with the non-profits in town again and host another health fair this fall with a goal to get back to our pre-COVID attendance numbers of 400-500 people.”

Non-profit vendors present at the fair included: YMCA, The Oak House, BAIN, Hope Farms, Dolly Parton Imagination Library, Harvest House of Hope, AA, SWGRL, Life Link, Compassionate Friends, United Way, Rebuild SWGA, Health Department, Department of Veteran Affairs, and the Vashti Center.

Hospital CEO Jim Lambert shared Sinko’s positivity, saying, “Memorial Hospital and Manor is very proud to have been able to hold this free community health fair and appreciate everyone who came out… Thank you to our non-profit vendors that were able to attend and provide valuable information to our community members. We look forward to all of you joining with us again in the future.”

Lambert also reiterated the importance of such events to communities, stating, “It is important to us to serve our community and make physical and mental health resources available to everyone. These events give an opportunity to those who may not always make it to a doctor’s appointment or know about our local non-profit resources… Our hope is to create a healthier and more informed community through these events and look forward to hosting them more regularly again.”