Foundation gives $5,000 to help fight obesity

May 4, 2008 at 12:00a.m.

WARREN — The Community Foundation of the Mahoning Valley has given the United Methodist Community Center $5,000, which will be used to support the Family Fitness Program. The program addresses the growing problems of obesity, high blood pressure and diabetes in children, youths, and their families, at the community center’s Warren site at 760 Main Ave. S.W., said Millicent S. Counts, community center executive director.

Awareness of ALS: There is no cure

May is ALS Awareness Month. ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or Lou Gehrig’s disease) is a disorder that destroys the nerve cells that control voluntary muscles. Muscles grow progressively weaker until paralyzed, and death usually occurs within three to five years.

The disease typically strikes adults in the prime of life. Its cause is unknown, and no cure has yet been found, according to the Muscular Dystrophy Association, which commits $12 million a year for ALS research and maintains 38 MDA/ALS centers at major medical institutions across the country, as well as a national network of 225 hospital-affiliated MDA clinics.

Residents of Northeast Ohio affected by ALS and related diseases receive medical care at St. Elizabeth Health Center in Youngstown and MetroHealth Medical Center in Cleveland.

Health-care jobs event set

ALLIANCE — During the 2008 observation of National Hospital Week, May 11 through May 17, Alliance Community Hospital Educational Services is offering instructional and informative presentations about health-care jobs in the region and state. The signature event is a “Careers in Healthcare” seminar May 13 from 4:30 to 7 p.m. in Conference Room 1-A of the hospital. The seminar is free and open to the public.

Hospital will sponsor Run and Walk on July 4

HOWLAND – The Stars and Stripes 5K Run and Walk will be July 4 at Howland High School Stadium on Shaffer Drive. Registration for the event, sponsored by St. Joseph Health Center’s Urgent Care Center in Howland, will begin at 7 a.m., followed by the 1-mile walk at 8 a.m. and the 5K race at 8:20 a.m.

A children’s 50-yard dash will follow the race. All participating children will receive a medal and must be accompanied by an adult. Runners should arrive no later than 7:30 a.m. The run will follow a route thorough Howland closed to traffic for the event.

The registration fee before June 20 is $12. Race-day registration is $15. The 1-mile fun walk is $10, and the 50-yard dash is free. Souvenir T-shirts are guaranteed to the first 300 entrants. Cash prizes will be awarded to the top overall male and female finishers, as well the top male and female runners from each age division. Awards will be distributed at the stadium after the race. Call (330) 856-4151.

Safety courses offered

YOUNGSTOWN — The National Safety Council is offering safety courses at 25 E. Boardman St. They are: First aid, May 14, fee $32; and CPR/AED (cardiopulmonary resuscitation and automated external defibrillator), May 14, fee $32. Register at least one week before the class by calling (330) 747-8657.

Skin cancer screenings are offered for free

The American Cancer Society, American Academy of Dermatology and Humility of Mary Health Partners are offering two free skin cancer screenings during skin cancer awareness month in May. They are 5 to 7 p.m. May 13, St. Elizabeth Health Center’s Boardman Cancer Center, 8401 Market St.; and 6 to 8 p.m. May 20, St. Joseph Health Center’s Cancer Center, 667 Eastland Ave. S.E., Warren. The skin cancer screenings are available to those who are not under the care of a dermatologist. Appointments for the screenings are scheduled on a first-come, first-served basis. An appointment is necessary. No walk-ins are permitted. Call (330) 480-3151 or toll free at (877) 700-4647.

New MRI at St. Joe’s

WARREN — St. Joseph Health Center has a new magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) system, the Signa HDx 1.5T from GE Healthcare, that assists physicians in diagnosing a wide range of patient conditions and prescribing the right treatment to expedite recovery, said Tammy Blandine, St. Joseph Health Center medical imaging manager. For female patients, the new MRI system enables physicians to see both breasts at the same time, which may potentially eliminate the patient having to go through the breast imaging process twice.

Golf Scramble to benefit A Way With Words

LAKE MILTON — A Way With Words Foundation is having its fourth annual Golf Scramble May 31 at Olde Dutch Mill Golf Course in Lake Milton. The cost is $300 per four-person team, which includes green fees, cart, ticket for a chance at $250, 000, as well as food. Play will begin with a shotgun start at 8 a.m. Cash prizes are $400 for first place, $300 for second, and $200 for third. Other prizes are also available.

Proceeds to benefit the ROCcK Children’s Choir trip to Victory Junction Gang Camp in North Carolina during Cancer Week. For more information, call Brenda Rider at (330) 360-3300. Hole sponsors are always appreciated at $100 or $300 exclusive. Also available are cart and path sponsors for those in “honor of or In memory of” at $25.

Health fair planned

WARREN — The Love is Ageless Community Health Fair will take place from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. May 15 at White Oak Manor, 1926 Ridge Road S.W. It is free and open to the public. Free blood pressure screenings are from noon to 1 p.m. Call (330) 369-4672.

Empty Arms service set

HERMITAGE, Pa. — Parents, friends and family members who have experienced the loss of a child through miscarriage, stillbirth, or infant death are invited to attend UPMC Horizon’s annual Empty Arms Memorial Service at 7 p.m. May 12 at the Womancare Center of UPMC Horizon.

The candle-lighting service will be a time to remember the love and loss of an unborn or newborn child. Participants can share pictures, poems or personal thoughts with others who understand their grief. The service is free and all are welcome. Call Lisa Fox at (724) 983-8730.

Take a step to save a life

AKRON — On May 16, take the first step to save a life – join the National Marrow Donor Program Registry for free during the Akron Children’s Hospital’s Thanks Mom Marrow Drive.

The drive is open to the public and is from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the Considine Professional Building, on Bowery Street directly across from Akron Children’s Hospital’s main entrance. Joining the registry is quick, easy and pain-free. The registration process takes about 10 minutes and includes swabbing the inside of the cheek with a cotton swab and completing a questionnaire.

Breast cancer researchers seek sisters for study

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C. — The Sister Study, conducted by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, one of the National Institutes of Health, is seeking 50,000 volunteers, whose sisters have had breast cancer, to help determine how environment and genetics affect risk for breast cancer.

Researchers are particularly asking blacks, Latinas, Asians, Pacific Islanders and American Indians to enroll. Also, Caucasian women with high school diplomas or less education, who are between the ages of 65-74, are still needed. The study is no longer enrolling Caucasian women who are 35-64 years of age with more than a high school education because they are already well represented in the study group.

To volunteer or learn more about the Sister Study, visit www.sisterstudy.org or call toll free (877) 474-7837.

Caregivers group will meet

HOWLAND — S.O.A.R. (Supportive Options and Resources), a group for caregivers, meets at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Living Lord Lutheran Church, 851 Niles-Cortland Road N.E. The service is free and open to the public. Call Holly Paridon at (330) 856-5302.