(Photos by Ryan Holloway/Miami-Dade County)
South Florida residents and families flocked to the Miami-Dade County Fair and Exposition Center, E. Darwin Fuchs Pavilion on July 27 to take advantage of a multitude of health services and safety tips provided by Commissioner Joe A. Martinez during his Annual Health & Safety Expo. More than 2,000 attendees took advantage of the free health check-ups for glucose, high blood pressure, cholesterol, and much more. Everyone enjoyed music by DJ Alex Gutierrez, Gigi the Giraffe from Zoo Miami, Billy the Marlin, the Miami Dolphin Cheerleaders, stilt walkers, the “Firehouse” bounce house and much more.
Among other services offered, residents were able to apply for a driver’s license or ID card with the assistance of representatives from the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV), received information from several Miami-Dade County Departments on their services, as well as bring in their old shower heads and incandescent lightbulbs to exchange for a high efficiency showerhead and CFL lightbulbs from Miami-Dade County’s Water and Sewer Departments. Miami-Dade County Police and Miami-Dade County Fire Rescue provided hands-on demonstrations and safety tips. Free back to school book bags and school supplies were also provided.
“The goal of the Health & Safety Expo has always been to put residents that have limited financial reach in touch with medical professionals and provide them with much needed health screening services,” said Commissioner Martinez. “The health and safety of our residents is a priority for me, and I am pleased to see families coming out to take advantage of all the health services we offered while having a great time. All of this was offered free of charge to residents, thanks to our sponsors and other vendors who participated in the event.”
The Annual Health & Safety Expo was made possible through the sponsorships of West Kendall Baptist Hospital, OpusCare, Cooper General, Cemex, Walmart, FPL, Family Medical Clinic, Adonel Concrete, AvMed, Chen Neighborhood Medical Center, Kendall Regional Medical Center, Molina Health Care, Nicklaus Children’s Hospital, Vitas, WaWa and Leon Medical Center.
