Detroit High School Students Plan Community Health and Wellness Fair for 300 Residents

DETROIT, MI, May 19, 2013 (Press-News.org) SER Metro-Detroit, Jobs for Progress, Inc., in partnership with the Wayne County Health on Wheels Mobile Health Unit and 10 local healthcare providers, will be providing complimentary healthcare screenings for residents of Southwest Detroit on Saturday, June 1, 2013 from 11:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. at SER's offices at 9301 Michigan Avenue in Detroit.

The Community Health and Wellness Fair will provide much needed information and screenings for residents who are largely uninsured or underinsured. Due to several factors, including lack of access to affordable healthcare, healthy foods, and limited awareness of the causes and consequences of major illnesses, chronic diseases that are largely preventative run rampant in Southwest Detroit. Major issues include diabetes and obesity. In fact, according to a recent study by the Center for Disease Control, nearly a fifth of Detroit High School students are obese. The fair will also address environmental and emotional health issues such as pollution and bullying.

The event is being organized by high school students who participate in SER Metro-Detroit's Youth of Promise Leadership Program. Youth in the program are responsible for researching, planning and implementing all phases of the fair. The event is helping to build their leadership and workforce skills while providing a valuable service to the community. High school freshman Jazmine Ellis has been serving as the project lead for the emotional health committee and helped to identify bullying as one of the key themes. She says, "I learned a lot of public speaking skills while I was working on this project. I also learned how a project goes from start to finish and it was cool to see my ideas come together. I felt like being a leader in this group was good because I got to help other people. Some of my group members were scared to present in front of everyone but I was able to help them feel more confident and now they have those public speaking skills."

The fair will increase community awareness of critical health issues by promoting a healthy lifestyle, providing valuable screenings, and sharing fun practices to stay healthy. There will be learning and demonstration stations for both emotional and physical health related issues. Attendees will have access to routine dental exams, as well as screenings for: HIV/AIDS, Body Mass Index, blood pressure, stroke risk, cholesterol, and other conditions. The American Diabetes Association and the Hispanic Nurses Association will be amongst the guests of the Community Health and Wellness Fair.

SER Metro Detroit, Jobs for Progress, Inc. (SER) is a community-based organization that believes in the potential of each and every individual. For the past 40 years, SER has assisted thousands of marginalized and disadvantaged residents from across the City of Detroit and the region in becoming self-sufficient through quality employment, education and training programs. For more information visit http://www.sermetro.org