Colton Brings Back Annual Health and Safety Fair

Colton Community Services hosted their annual Senior Health and Safety Fair on Oct. 1 at the Gonzales Community Center. This year, there was an even bigger turnout in vendors with over 40 signed up and participating. Some of the vendors that came out to the health fair included the Inland Empire Master Gardener’s Club, the Braille Institute, San Bernardino Environmental Health Services, IEHP, Walgreens, and many more. Heidi Strutz, Recreation Coordinator for Colton Community Services and the coordinator for the Health Fair, explained that “…many of the vendors are non-profits that provide services for community members that are 50+, but we also have some for-profit vendors as well.” The Health and Safety Fair welcomed Colton community members who are ages 50+ to become familiar with many of the services they are available to them. Strutz mentioned, “There are bigger health fairs throughout the County, but many of our seniors have a hard time getting to them [due to transportation issues, health concerns, or disabilities]." Strutz explained that they wanted to provide a local health fair for community members that is more accessible, “Our goal for this event was to provide services for our seniors geared towards health and safety.” Vendors such as the San Bernardino Department of Aging and Adult Services (DAAS) aids seniors in getting assistance and information about the different community services and activities geared specifically towards them. Seniors can simply call DAAS with any assistance and they then transfer these community members to specific programs and organizations that can help them.