Photo Courtesy of Alli Cahill
South Orange Middle School students help run booths at the April 16 Wellness Extravaganza.
By Shanee Frazier, Staff Writer
MAPLEWOOD/SOUTH ORANGE — Tips on how to live a healthy life were the focus of the first ever SOMS Wellness Extravaganza held Thursday, April 16, in the South Orange Middle School Gymnasium.
The event included more than 50 vendors, from all aspects of health and wellness, and attendees were able to take part in everything from live cooking demonstrations to free health screenings for glucose, cholesterol and blood pressure.
The event was organized by Alli Cahill, a health and physical education teacher at the school, and was attended by approximately 500 students, parents and members of the local community.
In an interview with the News-Record, Cahill said that her desire to put the event together was to find a way to give back to her students.
“A passion of mine is giving back to the community and doing community service,” Cahill said. “I wanted to give back to my students what they give me every day.”
The event was sponsored by YouthNet and the Governor’s Council on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse; funds from a grant awarded to the school principal were also used for the event.
Cahill said that she wanted a community night, in which she could bring parents and students together, as well as members of the local community. To that end, some of the booths in attendance were operated by parents of students, and both parents and students served as volunteers at the event.
“I want to make the kids excited about health and physical education,” Cahill said. “They can get involved with lots of community events, and maybe one of these areas will peak their interest for a future career.”
Cahill said that the event took approximately two months to plan, and she “poured her heart and soul into it,” emailing fliers to contacts, attending workshops in the area and working tirelessly to secure vendors. To get the students invested in the event, and to help promote it throughout the school, Cahill started flier, logo and poster contests and encouraged the students to submit their artwork. Cahill also held a staff competition the week prior to the event where she asked her fellow teachers to wear pedometers and track their steps each day.
Community members also spread the word about the event, with information about the event being posted on the Mommy Blogs page for Maplewood.
There were student performances by the drum circle and the jazz band, as well as a special song and piano routine at the beginning of the event.
Behavioral health professionals were also present, including psychologist Amy Hartford and representatives from the Wellspring Health and Wellness Center.
Vendors represented at the event included Jane’s Juice, Jersey Cares, Somatics Loft and Chef Dell’Amore, just to name a few. Fitness centers such as Retro Fitness, Studio 509 Fitness and Viva Z Club were also in attendance to give attendees useful exercise and fitness information.
The event also featured a booth by the middle and high school nurses, who passed out pamphlets on the top maladies for which students come into their office to be treated.
Cahill said her students have already asked her when they can organize another Wellness Extravaganza.