Adventists Health Fair Includes FREE Cholesterol & Other Tests, Coaching, Garden, Food, Red Cross & Prizes!

(4/1) The Adventist Health Fair was such a great success last year they decided to do it again this year on Sunday, April 15th from 11 to 4 PM. This time they have even more to offer. The centerpiece of their Health Fair, this year, will be their new ‘Eden Way Community Garden’. Pastor Conrad Reichert will be showing the film ‘Back to Eden’, a tutorial on how to have an organic garden, the easy way, without the back- breaking tilling and weeding. After the film there will be a walk-through of the new Community Garden, with its offerings of free garden plots to those in the community. The free plots will be fully prepared for planting for those with limited space in their own yard, lack of means and/or mobility. The plots will be allotted on a first come first serve basis.

Adventist WholeHealth Network, supplier of wellness screenings and programs to corporate businesses, will be available for a variety of health related tests including Blood Cholesterol, HDL Cholesterol, Blood Pressure. They will also be available for consultation and coaching, free of charge that day. Participants will be notified by phone or mail of their results per Pennsylvania Department of Health laboratories regulation. Body Mass Index, Fat Percent Composition, Health Age and other computerized assessments will be done by church volunteers. These are all free of charge to attendees of the fair.

The Gettysburg Adventists will offer a potpourri of informational and interactive booths and free coaching on how to avoid and/or reverse heart disease, cancers, obesity, diabetes, arthritis and other degenerative diseases. Visitors will be treated to free vegetarian cuisine demos, samplings, recipes, children’s activities which include an obstacle course, and Biblical information. There will be door prize giveaways throughout the day.

For those not familiar with Adventism, it is a type of "Back to the basics, rest on the Sabbath, heed Old Testament dietary codes, and be ready for Jesus to return at any moment, Protestant religion", as defined in the USA Today article by G. Jeffrey MacDonald on March 17th, 2011. The Seventh-day Adventist denomination is also currently enjoying the title, "fastest growing denomination in North America". They believe their distinctive health message has a great deal to offer families and individuals of all ages.

An important addition to this year’s line-up of activities is the Red Cross. Representatives will be here to collect blood which will stay in the Gettysburg community.

While it isn’t required, those interested in the blood tests and assessments are advised to make an appointment. Go to www.getsda.org or call Susan Karppala at 642-8453 for more information and/or to reserve a time for testing. The church, located at 1495 Biglerville Road in Gettysburg, has ample and handicapped parking. The Health Fair is free of charge and everyone is invited to attend.

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