A Celebration of Food + Art + Health will kick off at 8 a.m. Saturday morning at the Owensboro Regional Farmers’ Market. The signature event of Owensboro Health hopes to inspire community members to discover the art of healthy living.
“It’s really important to engage with our community and impact health within our community,” said Debbie Zuerner Johnson, Owensboro Health director of community engagement. “One of our priority focus areas is arts and healing. This day puts us on pause and helps us really reflect on the arts as a vibrant healthy community.”
Owensboro Health hopes to focus on the intersection of the three event components — food, art and health. There is no mistaking food is apart of culture, especially in the local farming community, Zuerner Johnson said. When you add the art and healing component of that it becomes a uniquely special day, she said.
“These are things that truly engage participants, community members and our own employees as well. Things for all ages,” Zuerner Johnson said. “All of our area arts organizations are participating. There will be performances, both music, dance, and theatrical performances as well as visual arts.”
Participating organizations include:
• Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame and Museum
• Owensboro Art Guild
• Owensboro Dance Theatre
• Owensboro Health Healthpark
• Owensboro Health Community Wellness
• Owensboro Museum of Fine Arts
• Owensboro Symphony Orchestra
• Theatre Workshop of Owensboro
• Encore
• Owensboro Health Rock Painting
There will hands-on opportunities to participate, including a rock painting activity and a chance for individuals to participate in a community art project that incorporates a piece of hand-painted art on a large mural to be displayed publicly.
“Each person will paint a piece and place it on a mural and we will hang that in the lobby for several months,” Zuerner Johnson said. “To watch people sit and do that, they really get lost in the moment. We’ve watched it happen year after year, people taking a break to just sit and paint. It’s really healthy and therapeutic.”
Employees from the Healthpark, Community Wellness Team, as well as educational components like fall prevention and healthy recipes, will all be included in the day’s lineup. The team from trauma services is also expecting to give away up to 200 bike helmets at this year’s event.
“You add those things together and you have a sense of wellness in the community,” Zuerner Johnson said. “It’s a great time to come and experience the arts. Where else do you get all of the arts organizations at one place?”
For more information on this Saturday’s event visit the event’s Facebook page.
