Pelee Island will soon connect its residents with wellness resources through the 3rd annual health fair happening on June 1.
Mayor Cathy Miller says Pelee Island has uncommon circumstances that can contribute to poor mental health outcomes and addiction.
Miller says the health fair is important to the people that live on the island and have trouble getting on and off.
"A lot of seniors, people that are working on the island that can't get away, maybe Sunday is their only day, we have a large migrant farm community that can benefit too," Miller said. "We have everything from vaccination and medical referrals, mental health and addictions support, workplace safety, legal information."
She says a number of agencies are involved in the fair.
"The Consulate of Mexico, Migrant Worker Community Program, Migrant Worker Ministry, TeaMWork, Mobile Medical Support (MMS), and South Essex Community Council, and of course our own partners at Canadian Mental Health are coming over, and the Pelee Island Medical Clinic, which is operated by Erie Shores HealthCare," Miller said.
Miller says the organizations will offer a wide range of services.
"We have nurse practitioners that come, they do vaccination clinics, they do cancer screenings, and these are things that our residents are having access to that they weren't previously exposed to, also these organizations are getting exposed to maybe the need on Pelee that they didn't understand, so it's a win-win for everybody," she said.
The health fair will take place at the Pelee Island Winery Pavilion on June 1, 2025 from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m.