Carson residents find health resources

A steady stream of the curious and conscientious climbed the steps to the Carson Nugget Ballroom on Saturday seeking information on health and beauty resources available in Carson City.At the Carson City Chamber of Commerce Health, Wellness and Beauty Faire, visitors gathered information from more than two dozen booths covering everything from medical services to the health benefits of pet ownership.“We had people waiting here when we opened at 10 a.m.,” Ronni Hannaman, chamber executive director, said in the afternoon. “People say they’re learning things. We’ve had all age groups starting out this morning with a lot of seniors.”A big attraction was the Carson City Health & Human Services booth, which offered free flu shots as well as information about disease prevention and health services.Mark Vallejos got a call from his wife to come down and get his shot. Having taken care of that chore, he began checking out the information available at the venue.“It’s been good,” Vallejos said while looking at the Positive Energy booth. “I’m still looking around.”Susan Vann stopped at the Health & Human Services booth to have her blood pressure checked. A resident of Carson City for less than a year, Vann found an abundance of helpful information at the fair.“Being new to the area, I’m getting information on where to go for a doctor,” she said.Dolores Gigert, a 22-year resident of Carson City, sought help understanding a recent blood test while collecting a bag full of brochures to examine at home.“They really do have a lot of information,” she said. “Everybody’s very knowledgeable.”Michelle Thomas, a nurse navigator from Carson Tahoe Health, offered a wealth of information about cancer screening, treatment and post-treatment adjustments.“A lot of time people don’t want to deal with cancer,” Thomas said. “This is a good place to ask questions.”Pointing to a model of the colon, she said a lot of people were asking questions about colonoscopies.Representatives from other businesses and organizations offered information about healthy eating, anti-aging products, exercise, financial wellness and more.Costco had a long booth staffed by Sharon Nicholas, Costco marketing representative.“A lot of people ask about the different products we carry and if we’re bringing something back,” she said. “A lot of people don’t know we carry cosmetics.”At the Carson Tahoe SPCA booth, volunteers talked about the health benefits of pet ownership with listening to pet stories shared by those stopping at the booth.Pet ownership “lowers your blood pressure, big time,” said Susan Paul, volunteer. “You get more exercise ... and unconditional love.”The chamber’s Hannaman said the second annual event Health, Wellness and Beauty Faire was on track to host 350 to 400 people.