New events offered at Veterans Memorial Hospital’s “Family Wellness Fair” May 6
“Family Wellness Fair” returns to VMH in Waukon ... The annual “Family Wellness Fair” will be held Wednesday, May 6 from 3:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. at Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH) in Waukon. This year a free community meal will be served celebrating the 75th Anniversary of the hospital and 5th Anniversary of the hospital clinics. The numerous fair exhibits will host activities, giveaways and education for all ages. All visitors are again welcome to enter the fair through the VMH main entrance, the hospital clinic entrance or the Emplify by Gundersen Clinic entrance allowing for more accessible parking options. Pictured are scenes from last year’s event. New this year, infant and child car seat checks will be available in the hospital clinic parking lot throughout the night. Everyone in the area communities is welcome to attend this free event. Submitted photos.
The annual “Family Wellness Fair” will be held Wednesday, May 6 from 3:30 to 6:00 p.m. at Veterans Memorial Hospital in Waukon. This year the 75th anniversary of the hospital will be celebrated along with the 5th anniversary of the hospital’s clinics with a community meal. Health and wellness testing, exhibits, activities and refreshments will all be providing a complete evening of entertainment and education for families of all ages. All visitors are again welcome to enter the fair through the Veterans Memorial Hospital main entrance, the hospital clinic entrance or the Emplify by Gundersen Clinic entrance allowing for more accessible parking options.
Exhbitors
Many exhibitors will have tables on display with information, demonstrations, and activities for the entire family. Over 40 exhibitors with educational information, games, treats, prizes and activities are planned with new exhibitors being welcomed to the fair. They will be located throughout the route that winds through the hospital, Emplify by Gundersen Clinic and VMH Clinic. Allamakee Prevention Advisory is returning this year with their Hidden in Plain Sight room, educating adults on the creative ways youth can hide drug and vaping materials right in plain sight and learn what to look for.
Child Car Seat Checks
Infant and child car seat checks will be offered in the VMH Clinic parking lot. These will be offered by Growing Bear Daycare and Child Care Resource and Referral of NE Iowa.
Entertainment
Entertainment for the evening will include special appearances by Mike Chapman, Balloon Artist and “Klyde Thinger” the Clown. A Waukon Fire Department fire truck and Veterans Memorial Hospital ambulance will be parked outside the fair for children to view. Face painting will again be offered this year plus many, many other activities.
Health Fair
Veterans Memorial Hospital staff will be on hand to perform a number of free health tests and share health information such as blood pressure testing, O2 saturation and carbon monoxide testing, hemoglobin testing, the effects of smoking, diabetes and blood sugar testing, Vitamin D and blood type testing, correct hand washing technique, poison prevention and information on the patient portal, MyChart.
For the fourth year, “Be the Match” bone marrow sampling will be offered which will be provided by the hospital’s Laboratory. This is the same program that Robyn Roberts from Good Morning America endorses following her own successful bone marrow transplant match 12 years ago. A blood stem cell donation can be a cure for blood cancer, sickle cell, and other deadly diseases. Many patients and their families are counting on drives like this to find their match. The process is simple and painless and will be available for all visitors to the fair.
Refreshments
Veterans Memorial Hospital Nutrition Services will be providing a community meal that night for all who attend the fair in honor of the hospital’s anniversary. The meal will be packaged in a sack for taking home or can be enjoyed in the hospital dining room.
Door Prizes
Over 100 door prizes will be given away. All visitors to the Family Wellness Fair are eligible to win just by signing in at the registration table as they enter the event. Names will be drawn throughout the evening with all winners posted at the same door those visitors entered, so it is important to enter and exit at the same door. The fair route will include both clinics as well as the lower level of the hospital. Parking will be available at all three entrances to the fair, as well as along the street.
The annual “Family Wellness Fair,” held Wednesday, May 6, from 3:30 to 6:00 p.m., is a community wide event offering families of all ages a night of entertainment and education about the area resources available to them. This fun-filled family event is free and open to all members of the community of any age. For any additional information, please contact Erin Berns, Public Relations Director at Veterans Memorial Hospital at 563-568-3411.
