A Health and Wellness Forum and Fair, held at St Andrew’s Church Hall, at Island Harbour, on Wednesday evening, February 11, by two visiting specialists, has been described as “excellent” in terms of attendance by many persons and delivery of service.
That description has come from Independent Candidate in District 1, for the upcoming general election, Ms Palmavon Webster, who was part of that event, but in a low-key manner. The consulting doctors were Peter Amato, a Senior Clinician at the Inner Harmony Wellness Centre based in St Martin; and Howard Fisher, a Natural Specialist, author of seventeen books on health and a world-renowned lecturer.
“I was there for the early part of the proceedings. I had another engagement so I wasn’t there at the end, but it was excellent,” Ms Webster told The Anguillian. “The feedback we are getting from the community is that this is just what we need. You can speak with several people including Pastor Kennedy Vanterpool who attended. He himself has written extensively on health matters.
“What is encouraging is that the OECS in their harmonisation effort, recognise that Anguilla has an excellent position for a wellness culture. Quality of life is very important to us, and we have to find ways where we can match it in terms of affordability and access to the care we need. We believe that, maybe, just small changes in the way we eat, and the timing of our meals, will allow us to live healthy lives and that is the approach we are taking.”
Ms Webster spoke in some detail about the work of the Care Centre, at Island Harbour, and its partnerships, with the Anglican and Seventh-day Adventist Churches and other partners including Fruity Web and Maris Edwards’ health shop. “We try to make it as non-political as we possibly can,” she stressed. “That is because we recognise that one of the weaknesses is that when a politician is involved, it keeps away people who really need help; so we try at the Centre to minimise any political influence. We just try to reach out to communities everywhere on the island.”
Meanwhile, Pastor Kennedy Vanterpool commented: “The Wellness fair really was phenomenal. It was a very good experience and I took my mother there. That experience helped me to find an alternative for my mother instead of ‘popping pills’… and, as a matter of fact, the entire family is going to see Dr Amato in St Martin to utilise an alternative and see if that can work for us.”
