Pond Island:--– Lions president, Lion Sunil Khatnani, has praised TelEm Group for its continued support of the Lion Rudy Hoeve Health & Wellness Fair, powered by TelEm, which gets underway at the Festival Village Saturday with a record number of booth-holders slated to take part.
According to Lion Sunil, this is the fourth year that the government-owned telecommunication company has shown its corporate citizenship by sponsoring a project that is vital to the community's continued health and wealth.
"Thanks to the donations and assistance of TelEm and other sponsors in the St. Maarten community, we can once again host this ever-growing event which is now one of the largest health and wellness fairs in the Caribbean today,"noted the Lions president during a short check presentation at the TelEm Group main building on Pond Island Tuesday.
Veteran Lion, Mr. Wally Havertong, says this year's event will be bigger and better than past events with three new organizations, The Sickle Cell Foundation, the Downs Syndrome Foundation and the Tzu Chi Foundation, scheduled to promote their respective causes at the health fair for the first time.
Lion Wally said the event will once again attract a host of people in the community, including senior citizens who can take various health checks, including checks for diabetes, high blood pressure, cholesterol and other ailments, and the youth, who can take HIV/AIDS tests if they wish.
"This year we have arranged to have a person at the fair to address seniors and those approaching retirement age about the steps they need to take to register for their pensions and many will be able to register at the fair right away," continued Lion Wally.
He said the organizers of the event have also arranged to have a podiatrist (foot doctor) at the fair to check the feet of diabetes patients and advise them accordingly.
Also on hand will be representatives of the St. Maarten Medical Center (SMMC) who will be inviting persons in the community to register into a brand new registration system at SMMC that is designed to make visiting and getting treatment at the local hospital a snap.
He has advised seniors who will be attending the fair that they can eat at least two hours before taking any tests – this to ensure they are strong and well once they arrive.
"A lot of seniors believe they cannot eat anything at all before having a test done, but that is not the case. Once they eat two hours before arriving they will be fine," continued Lion Wally.
He said once again the health fair is being dedicated to the late Lion member Rudy Hoeve, after whom the fair is named. He said Mr. Hoeve was especially concerned about health issues related to sight and how the Lions could help alleviate some of these issues while he was an active member of the service club.
"We began the health and wellness fair with 15 booths seven years ago, and on Saturday we will be hosting 38 booths in the Festival Village," said Lion Wally, indicating the tremendous growth of the event, which is provided free to the St. Maarten community.
He joked that the annual Lion Rudy Hoeve Health Fair would not be complete without the traditional Zumba exercise routine that will be taking place to warm up participants and visitors, starting at 9:00 am sharp, encouraging everyone to come out to dancer-size with ZUMBA.
The Lion Rudy Hoeve Health and Wellness Fair is scheduled to begin at 9:00 am in the morning and continues until 4:00 pm in the afternoon.
The organizers say parents and guardians with children at the fair can rest assured that accommodation is being made to keep their children entertained with activities and games while they are having their tests done or visiting the booths.
"We expect a tremendous turnout and want to encourage everyone to come out and take advantage of all that is being offered from some top experts in the health field on St. Maarten," said Lion Wally.
On behalf of TelEm Group, Lead Customer Service Representative, Suraj Ramdas, presented a check to Lion president Sunil with best wishes for the day.
He said TelEm Group management is always keen to provide for the community it serves and will be encouraging its own personnel to visit the booths and also make use of what is being offered.
