Community's Health a Priority at Inaugural Resource Fair

Colton High School was peppered with vendors eager to share their information and resources with the community - and that's what they were able to do for over 200 people on Saturday during the Colton Joint Unified School District's inaugural Mental and Physical Health Awareness Fair. Organized by the CJUSD Community Cabinet’s Physical and Mental Health Awareness Committee, last weekend's fair sought to put families in touch with information about various services available in the area to promote better physical and mental well-being, district officials shared. Saturday's event was the culmination of several months of work, planning having begun in September. The district's Community Cabinet, of which the committee who planned the event is a part, formed in 2013 with the goal of uniting business, labor, government, education and community services together to support schools and students. "We are so grateful for the dedicated assistance and collaboration we have from so many community partners," shared Katie Orloff, a district spokesperson. Scott Boggs, co-chair of the Mental and Physical Health Awareness committee who coordinated the event, felt the district's goal in providing this information was met. "Our goal was to bring information and resources to our community/parents/students. I think we definitely reached that goal given the great turnout from both vendors and the community," Boggs said. Vendors shared information on a variety of community services promoting physical health and mental awareness, including military branch representatives, medical organizations like Arrowhead Regional Medical Center, local dentists, child care resources, and more. "There were many different types of resources present and I have no doubt that everyone was able to find something they can benefit from," Boggs said, indicating that resource events such as the one held Saturday are important to hold for the community, helping create a hub of information for busy parents and students. "The connection between the vendors services and resources and the community is hard to make without these types of events. Parents often don’t have time to seek them out – so to provide one event where they can make contact with many of them is invaluable." The events are important enough, shared Boggs, that the hope is to continue the resource fair and turn it into an annual event. "In the end we had many great vendors agree to participate – and as you can see from the turnout they didn’t disappoint. The Community Cabinet and their connection to the Alliance for Education provides for a great pool of resources with which to draw from. It was invaluable in the creation of an event such as this," Boggs said. [END] Date: 2/21/2015 Time: 8:00 a.m. Google Map Event Location: Colton High School Address: CA 0 Description: To noon. Hosted by the CJUSD Community Cabinet. CONTACT INFO Phone: CJUSD 909-580-5000 **** From Katie Orloff, CJUSD spokeswoman: Approximately 50 vendors came out for Colton Joint Unified School District's Resource Health Fair at Colton High School Saturday, sharing information with parents, students and community members about a wide range of health and wellness related services. The event was organized by CJUSD Community Cabinet’s Physical and Mental Health Awareness Committee as a way to connect district families with valuable services available in the area. The district’s Community Cabinet formed in 2013 as a way to unite business, labor, government, education and community service organizations to work together to support schools and students and create a brighter future region. We are so grateful for the dedicated assistance and collaboration we have from so many community partners. ________________________________________ From Scott Boggs 1. Can I confirm your role/title in the event? I am the co-chair of the Mental and Physical Health Awareness group, one of 4 groups that make up the CJUSD Community Cabinet. It was this group that sponsored the event – I coordinated the event on their behalf. 2. As this was the inaugural event, what was the overall goal that the CJUSD Community Cabinet and the school district hoped to reach in this event? Would you say this goal was reached, and why or why not? Our goal was to bring information and resources to our community/parents/students. I think we definitely reached that goal given the great turnout from both vendors and the community. 3. What types of vendors participated in the event? I understand there were about 50 on Saturday. I think the final tally was 49. All types of vendors related to the area of physical and mental health awareness – they ranged from the military, the ARMC, to local dentists, etc… 4. How many parents and students would you estimate participated in the fair? I would estimate around 200 or so. 5. Do you feel that the community benefitted from the fair? Why or why not? I think they did. There were many different types of resources present and I have no doubt that everyone was able to find something they can benefit from. 6. Do you feel health & resource fairs like the one held Saturday are important to the community, and can you explain why you feel this way? They are extremely important. The connection between the vendors services and resources and the community is hard to make w/out these types of events. Parents often don’t have time to seek them out – so to provide one event where they can make contact with many of them is invaluable. 7. Is there a possibility of more health & resource fairs in the district's future? Yes – we plan to make this an annual event. 8. Were there any road bumps in the planning and execution of the event that organizers had to overcome? It went fairly smoothly to be honest. The vendor sign up started out slowly, but in the end we had many great vendors agree to participate – and as you can see from the turnout they didn’t disappoint. The Community Cabinet and their connection to the Alliance for Education provides for a great pool of resources with which to draw from. It was invaluable in the creation of an event such as this. 9. How long did the event take to put together, from the planning stages culminating in Saturday's event? The planning began last September, with most of the work taking place since the new year began.