Between the hours of 11 a.m. to 12 noon, close to 80 people had already streamed through the sixth annual Health Fair and Symposium, held by the New Haven Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. on Saturday, Feb. 4 at the Elks Club on Webster Street.
The New Haven Alumnae Chapter partnered with the American Heart Association to put on this year’s Health Fair, as part of the “Go Red” for Women Campaign, which asks the public to wear the color red to heighten awareness about women and heart disease. According to the American Heart Association’s website, heart disease kills more women than cancer.(According to the Centers for Disease Control,over 25 percent of black and white women die of heart disease, Hispanic women, just over 22 percent, over 17 percent of Native American women and just over 22 percent of Asian women.)
With six stations lined up agaisnt the walls of the Carter Marshall Hall, the free community event featured giveaways for the public, a raffle and a healthy heart lunch. Tables in the center of the hall were set up with white tables cloths, with decorative dolls in red dresses,along with framed messages such as, “from my heart to yours…support.” There was space set up for aerobic exercise at the back of the hall, where lunch was served, buffet syle, by sorority members.
Stopping at the different booths to receive information on physical and mental health, participants were then treated to a healthy meal of oven-fried chicken, dirty rice, smothered greens (cooked with smoked turkey), and banana pudding, made with fat-free and sugar-free ingredients and evaporated milk. “Wow!” said one of the women who was getting served, “This is all heart-healthy?”.
Imani Rellinord, 9, had stopped with her family at the Pyramid Family Dental Care table. Dr. Stephen Stanley was advising her on how long to brush her teeth, “especially after school, because you wanna decrease the bacteria in your mouth.” Imani listening intently, said she thought it was a “good idea“and will follow the dentist’s advice.
Linsday Pina, 24, of New Haven and a student at Southern Connecticut State University, was getting her blood pressure checked. It was 120 over 80, a very good and very healthy number. It was her first time getting her blood pressure checked. “This was good, nice — it was informative; I wish there was more stuff like this!”, she said, very pleased with her blood pressure numbers.
Health professional Darlene Godwin Scott,a Hillhouse grad, who resides in Maryland, was the keynote speaker.
Sorority Member Tracey Naylor who chaired the committee who organized the event, said she wanted African-American women who attended the event to get screened for high blood pressure, recognize it and get it treated as soon as possible.