The Women’s Contact Society is inviting everyone to make their physical and mental health a priority and attend the second annual International Women’s Day Wellness Fair at the Elks Hall Saturday, March 7.
Held just before International Women’s Day on March 8, this event takes place from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday and is free for anyone from the lakecity public to attend.
One of the fair’s organizers this year is Eileen Alberton who has been a member of the Williams Lake community for the last 30 years. A former veterinarian in Williams Lake, Alberton said she has experience with personal challenges as she left her job five years ago after burning out. After working several low-stress community jobs, Alberton began to work at the society in September as their community liaison.
“This Wellness Fair is to promote wellness and well being and because we are the Women’s Contact Society, it’s geared mainly towards women but we’ve got stuff there that’s going to interest everyone, from the oldest person in your family to the youngest,” Alberton said.
The fair has a wide range of over 40 vendors and participants including food companies, fitness groups and a variety of small businesses focused on personal, spiritual and physical wellness and wellbeing. One vendor Alberton is particularly excited to be bringing is the company of a 15-year-old lakecity girl called River Rations that sells mini-cheesecake cupcakes.
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Vendors and topics include Heartmath Mentor, steeped tea, Partylite, Epicure, Pampered Chef, Arbonne and Re4rm Fitness, reflexology, massage, copper jewellery, silver icing women’s clothes, the Cariboo Bethel Church, Cariboo Community Deathcaring Network, financial wellness, naturopath, natural soaps, ironwork, nutritionist/trainer, Mary Kay, Bell Broom and Cauldron and eating disorders.
Up in the mezzanine, meanwhile, they’ll be putting up some screens so that any massage therapists who want to give free samples have some privacy for their prospective clients. Alberton has tasked children from Big Lake Elementary School with creating these screens and drawing on paper bags they’ll be handing out to each attendant to carry any goodies they collect in.
From 12 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. Alberton said they’ll have some live entertainment performing on stage consisting of LeRae Haynes and the Borderband while Amber Grieg will be playing some acoustic guitar after they perform.
A concession will be handled by the Wildwood Fire Department who will be providing breakfast sandwiches in the morning and burgers and salad for lunch as their own fundraiser.
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“I think that the fair reminds people that they need to take care of themselves,” Alberton said, noting it also gives home-based businesses that provide services that can help people, a place to connect with clients.
“It just makes you aware that pampering yourself is a good thing, which I think we all forget because we’re always all so busy.”
Alberton said the fair should be a great opportunity to meet other people in the community and do some networking at the same time by seeing what types of wellness services Williams Lake has to offer here in the community. She herself is personally really excited for it as this will be her first year attending it.
patrick.davies@wltribune.com
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