Mountain West Medical Center has special plans for next weekend’s 10th annual Healthy Woman expo.
Mountain West was one of the hospitals chosen by its parent company to pilot the women’s expo ten years ago, said Becky Trigg, director of marketing for Mountain West Medical Center. The event has not only spread to other hospitals, Trigg said, but is also quite popular with local audiences.
“Women get excited about attending,” she said. “It’s local, so they don’t have to drive to Salt Lake to attend this big of an event.”
To mark the 10th anniversary, Mountain West has booked an especially popular keynote speaker, Stephanie Nielson. Nielson, the author of “Heaven is Here” and the popular NienieDialogs.com, is the survivor of a near-fatal plane crash that left 80 percent of her body burned.
Though Nielson lives with her husband and family in Utah County, she has such a busy schedule of speaking engagements that it can be difficult to book her for an event, Trigg said.
But, she said, Mountain West got lucky this year. Nielson spoke at one of the local medical center’s sister hospitals last year, she said, and Mountain West was able to “piggy back” on last year’s event to sneak in a booking for 2015.
After the presentation and book signing by Nielson, the expo will continue with a catered lunch including vegetarian and gluten-free options, and with breakout session on topics such as eating healthy on a budget, spring fashion, essential oils, bullying and suicide prevention, and medication safety.
There will also be clothing and jewelry vendors, representatives from Costco, Tooele Applied Technology College and Utah State University, healthcare providers, and various other booths for women to browse after lunch.
The breakout sessions used to precede the keynote speaker, Trigg said, but the event’s schedule was reversed so that women won’t feel as rushed during the latter part of the expo.
The expo has brought in at least 300 women each year since 2005, and some years has seen nearly 1,000 attend. But this year tickets are capped at 600 for crowd control purposes, and there are only about 130 spots remaining
Trigg said credit for the event’s success goes to the event’s advisory board, which is comprised of community volunteers.
“Some have been on the council all ten years,” she said. “That group of ladies and their commitment to the community make this event happen.”
The Healthy Woman expo will take place next Saturday, March 14, at Tooele High School. Doors open at 9:15 a.m. and the keynote speaker will begin at 10 a.m. Patrons are asked to park on the north side of the building; there will be shuttles available for those who desire them.
Tickets cost $15 and can be ordered by calling 435-843-3600.