Let me tell you how I felt when the Bismarck YMCA hosted a health fair in May 2022. It was the first in-person event I participated in since COVID, and as a marketing and outreach professional, it felt great to connect with other agencies and visit with the general public again! Organizations, businesses, and nonprofits were exhibiting their services/products to the Y members. It was National Senior Health and Fitness Day, the event was free, and the public was welcome to attend. During this event, I thought to myself that small communities should have a chance to learn about area services and resources, too. Then the idea was born to bring as many exhibit booths to a rural community as possible. The centrally located town of Washburn seemed like a great community to begin coordinating this event.
Washburn is centrally located in ND.
Like North Dakota Assistive, many organizations and agencies cover the whole state, so we began reaching out to other nonprofits aiming to reach rural communities. ND Assistive’s table at the Community Wellness Fair will be showcasing many of our assistive technology devices that are commonly requested from our loan library or frequently recommended by the Assistive Technology Consultants from our Bismarck and Fargo demonstration centers. Since the team from Bismarck’s demonstration center is organizing this fair, we have requested a vendor registration fee which will turn this event into a fundraiser for the Possibilities Grant. This grant managed in-house by ND Assistive, can provide up to $2,000 of assistive technology to an approved applicant who doesn’t have any other funding source for that needed device.
The Washburn Community Wellness Fair will be Wednesday, September 21, 2022, from 1 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. The Memorial Building was reserved with the assistance of the Washburn City Auditor’s office. We are proud to report that there will be over 20 exhibitors, including Alzheimer’s Association, Family Voices of ND, Dakota Center for Independent Living, West River Telecom, Home Health & Hospice agencies, multiple retirement communities, and so many more! Since this event is over a month away, we are still hoping more vendors will be interested in this opportunity to sell their products or promote their services. All types of businesses are welcome, not just those in the healthcare industry. Check out the Vendor Registration to learn more. You can review, share, print and post the promotion flyer. There is no cost to enter the event, however, there will be a central registration table at the entrance for all attendees to have a chance to win a door prize! We hope people from the surrounding area will come out to support this event. Help us spread the word and share our social media posts on Facebook.
Should you have any questions about this Community Wellness Fair in Washburn, please reach out to me by email: rkautz@ndassistive.org or call Reva Kautz, Marketing Director, at 701-552-7072. Mark your calendar to join us on September 21!