College to Host Benefit Walk and Health Fair

A walk to benefit the American Heart Assn. at Mission College on Saturday will be followed by a free health fair on the campus.

Participants in the walk are asked to sign up sponsors and can choose distances of 1 mile, 5 kilometers or 10 kilometers. The American Heart Assn. will use the proceeds to fund research into heart disease and stroke.

Registration will begin at 8 a.m., with the walk scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. The walk will end at El Cariso Park in Sylmar, where the American Heart Assn. will provide entertainment and hand out gifts and snacks to participants.

The Gateway to Health fair at Mission College will also begin at 8 a.m. and will continue after the walk is over until 1 p.m.

Among the services to be offered are blood pressure and HIV testing, nutritional assessments, stress management information, body fat analysis and chiropractic services.

Joanne Baltierrez, who is organizing the health fair, said a number of local health care organizations will be on hand to distribute information and discuss their services.

“We thought this would be a good opportunity to combine the two events and talk about health care,” said Baltierrez, a San Fernando city councilwoman. “We want to communicate to people the services that are out there for them.”

Both the health fair and registration for the American Heart Assn. walk will take place in the faculty parking lot at Mission College, 13356 Eldridge Ave.

For more information about the walk, call the American Heart Assn. at (800) 698-1156. For information about the health fair, call Mission College at (818) 364-7779.