Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Health-A-Rama plans coming together

Plans for the annual Health-A-Rama are coming together for the Sept. 18 event.

Elaine Williams, this year's chairman, told the Prescott-Nevada County Health Alliance, at its August meeting, 36 booths have already been registered with six more possibly going to register as well.

The Health-A-Rama provides screenings, along with information on how to live a healthier lifestyle. Some of the screenings include: blood sugar, cholesterol, body mass index, prostrate exam and blood pressure.

The Nevada County Rescue Unit will again be on hand to demonstrate how the Jaws of Life works. "Victims" will be in a car wreck and have to be cut out of the damaged vehicle.

Additionally, for the first time, there will be a booth for the Third Annual Picayune Toy Drive. Patrons of the Health-A-Rama can bring new or used toys by and drop them off at the booth. However, used toys must be in good condition or they won't be accepted.

The Health-A-Rama will again be held at the First Baptist Church gym.

Jon Chadwell, executive director of the Prescott-Nevada County Economic Development Office, was on hand to update the Alliance on some of the projects going on around Prescott.

He began by telling the group the city has received permission to begin construction on the walking-jogging trail by the Nevada County Health Unit. The track will first be laid out, then checked by the architect to make sure it was done right. From there, construction crews will pave the track, with benches to be installed at different points.

The track will be lighted at night to provide safety for those who prefer to walk in the evenings.

Chadwell said he applied for a grant to purchase exercise equipment for the track area through the tobacco settlement suit, but was turned down. However, he added, the city can apply again and try to get the funds.

Bids to repave all the streets in Prescott came in better than expected, he said.

"We thought we'd have to have the city crews do the prep work," he said. This, though didn't turn out to be the case as the bids were lower than expected.

The low bids were $3.6 and $3.7 million respectively, which is more than the city has available. But, the project specifications also included major work on Martin Street and Moore Lane. When this work was removed, the low bid was $2.4 million, leaving the city more than $500,000 to do other work. This money, Chadwell said, will be used to do some of the things planned on Martin and Moore, such as adding a sidewalk and widening the streets.

Additionally, he said, every city street will be overlaid with at least two inches of asphalt.

Chadwell was asked about the rural water project. Prescott Mayor Howard Taylor answered, saying the lines were 75 percent filled with water, but no pressure was applied. "We hope to be done by the end of October," he said.

Christie Woods, with the Division of Volunteers with the Arkansas Department of Human Services, was the guest speaker. She said the DHS has grants available to help organizations get their projects done, and the Division of Volunteers will help provide leads and aid in filling out the grants.

The division, she said, can help provide training, or assist in developing a volunteer program.

"Our services are free," she said. "Economically, each hour a volunteer works is worth $17. We don't have any boundaries and work with people's needs. We can work with a business, depending on what it wants."

Primarily, though, the division works with non-profit agencies.

Edie Greenwood talked about an obesity conference she attended. The idea, she said, is to help children make healthier choices in the foods and snacks they eat, especially at school.

There is a great deal of concern for the teen population with the current emphasis placed on body mass indexing and exercise, especially with teen-aged girls. Some tend to seem themselves as being "fat" when they aren't, and this can lead to eating disorders, such as becoming anorexic.

The focus, she said, needs to be on being healthy and making healthy choices where the diet is concerned. "A person can be overweight, but be healthy, just like a person can be thin and be unhealthy."