The Roman Catholic Diocese of Syracuse held its first-ever Health and Wellness Fair recently at Christ the King Retreat House in Syracuse. The free event was open to all diocesan and parish employees, parishioners and Catholic Charities employees.
Deacon Robert Fangio (L) also answers to “Dr. Robert Fangio, DDS.” Pictured here with Mohamad Ghazi, Dr. Fangio is part of the founding team of Amaus Dental Services.
Rosemary Smith, manager of Human Resources and Benefits for the Diocese, said the fair was an excellent opportunity to show off the retreat facility to a wider audience, but the main impetus was the diocesan “partnership with Excellus BlueCross BlueShield as our primary sponsor for the health fair.”
Smith added, “We started thinking about how to bring health information to the parishes from all of our wonderful vendors that we either partner with already, or those who just love the diocese.” She said the fair enabled the diocese to bring information and services “to the people, the diocese, and the schools and all of our families, whether you’re an employee or not. That’s really how this whole thing started.“
The event featured educational information and supportive resources for healthy lifestyles, including COVID booster shots administered by Wegmans Food Markets for those who preregistered.
Health professionals from a number of vendors provided answers to questions from attendees.
Business managers from a number of parishes had the opportunity to browse through the halls and meet with vendors to learn more about services available for their parishioners. Also featured were blood pressure and BMI screenings from Poverello Health Center, free dental screenings from Amaus Dental as well as vision screenings provided by Amaus Vision Services. Amaus services are part of the ministry outreach programs of the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in downtown Syracuse.
Beth Pronesti is the Cathedral’s business manager and she said their parishioners are very supportive of these health ministries.
“Parishioners want to have ministries that will help others,” she said. “We are an urban parish and we want to be sure people are taken care of, and this is an unusual way, with free glasses and free dental.”
In addition to Excellus, Wegmans, Poverello Health Center and Amaus Dental and Vision, other partners in the event included Brady Market, Cancer Services Program, Empower Federal Credit Union, Hematology/Oncology Associates of CNY, Mutual of America Financial Group and YMCA.
Questions about these events and services can be emailed to the diocese at [email protected] or by calling (315) 422-9091. Christ the King Retreat House, at 500 Brookford Road in Syracuse, can be reached by email at [email protected] or by calling (315) 446-2680.
