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On A Health Mission

ROBERT BURKE / Tampa Tribune.

Olivia Valencia, from Riverview, has her blood pressure checked by Mayra Cardona, with Sun Coast Health Center in Dover, at Beth-El Mission's free Senior Health Fair. There were medical tests for memory and alzheimer's, checks for blood pressure, blood sugar and cholesterol tests and mammograms for women over 40.

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By JOHN CEBALLOS, The Tampa Tribune

Published: October 24, 2007

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WIMAUMA - One of Beth-El Mission's goals is to help farmworkers achieve self-sufficiency through its many programs and services.

In October, that included hosting an event where hundreds of people could get routine medical examinations they may not otherwise be able to afford.

Beth-El Mission, 18240 U.S. 301 S., hosted its seventh annual health fair from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday. The event drew more than 400 people, many of whom were eager to take advantage of the opportunity.

'The fair didn't start until 9, but we had a bunch of people lined up outside as early as 7:30 in the morning,' said Jeannette Palencia, senior community outreach worker for the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute. 'Some of them were here before we were.'

Tarcila Pimentel, education director at Beth-El, was happy with this year's turnout, which was on par with the number of people who have attended in past years.

Visitors were able to get memory checks for Alzheimer's, as well as blood sugar, blood pressure and cholesterol tests.

Hugo Garcia of Riverview attended the fair for the first time.

'I heard about it from a few friends of mine,' Garcia said. 'I needed to make sure I was in good health, but I never seemed to have the chance to do it. This fair was the perfect opportunity.'

Garcia underwent cholesterol and blood sugar tests.

Other examinations included mammograms for women 40 and older and pap tests for women 18 and older.

Services were provided by the Moffitt Cancer Center, Catholic Mobile Medical Services, Catholic Charities Diocese of St. Petersburg and Suncoast Community Health Center.

'We've been involved in a lot of these health fairs because we speak Spanish, and we always have a good time because there's usually a very good turnout,' said Bob Morris of LifePath Hospice, which was also involved in the event. 'Wherever they speak Spanish, that's where we are.'

More than 100 volunteers from those organizations participated.

'All of these organizations go from town to town - like Dover or Tampa - several times each year and put on these events,' Palencia said. 'We're sort of like a traveling circus-health fair.'

Reporter John Ceballos can be reached at (813) 865-1555 or jceballos@tampatrib.com.

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