Country music star Naomi Judd will be headlining Murray’s first Healthy Living and Wellness Expo tomorrow at the Curris Center.
Matt Sullivan, the coordinator for the Healthy Living and Wellness Expo, said he was excited about the inaugural event and were able to bring in a celebrity of Judd’s status to speak as an advocate for healthy living.
“The Healthy Living and Wellness Expo is an opportunity to raise awareness about health issues for a large audience in the western Kentucky region,” Sullivan said. “Naomi’s been on a quest to learn about healthy living and wellness, and her story is the reason we were drawn to having her here.”
The event begins at 9 a.m. Saturday on the third floor of the Curris Center.
Health-related seminars will last until 3 p.m. and will include physicians speaking on different topics, a lawyer discussing care of the elderly, an insurance representative explaining Medicare and a local pastor speaking on spiritual health.
While the seminars are going on there will be approximately 40 exhibitors set up in the Curris Center’s Large Ballroom.
The exhibitors are coming to Murray from across the state, and they will be performing free health screenings for the public.
The screenings range from blood pressure readings to bone scans from eye exams to blood sugar tests.
From 3:30-4:30 p.m. the expo will feature a physician round table.
“The round table will be six or seven physicians on a stage, and people can ask them any question they want,” Sullivan said.
He was excited about this portion of the event, and said he hopes many people will show up with questions they have never had the opportunity to ask.
Sullivan said the expo is not only focused on the body, but on the full spectrum of health and wellness, from finances to spirituality.
“We’re trying to cover a broad range of health topics, and a broad age range as well,” Sullivan said.
Naomi Judd will begin her speech, titled “How to have a Breakthrough and not a Breakdown,” at 7 p.m.
“Her unique life experiences and her advocacy for healthy living make her a perfect speaker for the event,” Sullivan said. “I really encourage people of all ages to come out and see what’s going on. It’s not just for elderly people; it’s for students as well.”
Even though this is the first Healthy Living and Wellness Expo, Sullivan expressed enthusiasm at the thought of making it an annual event.
He said he believes a star like Naomi Judd coming to Murray for the first year will help in drawing people to the event. He is hopeful the expo will be a great success, and the community will respond well to the event.
“This is the first of many, we hope,” he said.
The Healthy Living and Wellness Expo is a free event, but the Naomi Judd presentation requires a ticket.
Tickets can be purchased at Walter’s Pharmacy, a sponsor of the event, online or at the door of the event.
Story by Kate Russell, Contributing Writer