AU-MNI Rural Health Fair opens to the community for the first time

When Jessica L. Stewart, PhD, had the idea for a joint healthcare event between Augusta University and McCorkle Nurseries, Inc. in rural Dearing, Georgia, six years ago, she didn’t anticipate what it would grow to be.

The AU-MNI Rural Health Fair started as more of a public health education event for nursery workers, and it didn’t include actual medical examinations or screenings.

Fast forward to 2026, and the health fair recently celebrated its 6th year, complete with numerous free health screenings and resources and a new twist that allowed it to reach even more folks: it was open to everyone.

“Mr. Don and Mr. Jack are the two brothers that inherited McCorkle Nurseries from their parents. Mr. Don passed away this year, and that was a big loss for the nursery and for the people in the community. He and Mr. Jack dreamed of eventually opening it up to the community, and this is the first year we’re doing that,” said Stewart, an assistant professor in the Department of Community and Behavioral Health Sciences at AU’s School of Public Health. “In order to do that and open it up for a specific time frame, we worked with the McDuffie County Chamber of Commerce, which was very supportive in getting that message out to the community.”

On June 5, a steady stream of MNI employees and community members filtered into the event throughout the day, receiving wellness checks and taking advantage of all the health services offered.

Faculty, staff and students from AU’s School of Public Health, College of Allied Health Sciences, Medical College of Georgia, the Georgia Cancer Center, Wellstar MCG Health and the AU Ryan White Program, as well as volunteers from Piedmont Healthcare, That’s My Nurse and Shepeard Community Blood Center performed carotid artery checks, cholesterol panels, hemoglobin A1C checks, diabetes risk assessments, glucose screenings, diabetic neuropathy screenings, COPD screenings, HIV screenings, biometrics, blood donations and mammograms.

Via Cognitive Health and Marketplace Chaplains also sponsored the event, and tables were set up offering even more resources to attendees who needed them.

For many of the nursery workers and people who live in the rural Dearing area, this is the only time of year they have access to these health services.

The town is located in McDuffie County, which is listed as a Primary Care Health Professional Shortage Area by the Georgia Rural Health Innovation Center and about 87% of the population within that area is underserved in terms of access to primary care physicians. Other rural counties in Georgia, especially those without medical centers, are in the same situation.

“This event is so important because of the lack of access. I think with any rural area, whether it’s Georgia, South Carolina, anywhere in the CSRA, we have to address this issue by bringing the care they need to them because we cannot just wait on our heels for people to come to us,” Stewart said. “That’s why we combine information with clinical care. We’re providing services and information to people that they maybe wouldn’t get elsewhere. I think because it’s coming from that kind of place, it’s received much differently.”

Rose Vazquez, the senior human resources business partner at McCorkle Nurseries Inc., has worked closely with Stewart to plan the event each year since its inception. She’s had a first-hand look at how it benefits MNI employees and how appreciative they are for the help.

“The more years we have it, the better it gets for our employees, especially the ones that don’t have medical insurance and the guest employees that we have here, because otherwise they will decide to go back to Mexico for their healthcare,” she said. “There are a lot of people that don’t have the money to pay for insurance, or even healthcare basics. A lot of people have struggled to find the right doctors, and everyone deserves healthcare.”

Jamaiyah Howard is pursuing her Master of Public Health degree with a concentration in Social and Behavioral Sciences through the School of Public Health, and it was her first time volunteering for AU-MNI as her Capstone project. She wants to work with pregnant women one day and said the health fair provides translational experience interacting with at-risk populations and like-minded organizations and providers.

“It’s taught me a lot about networking and being able to communicate with different people within the medical field,” Howard said. “Giving back to the community is what it’s all about. Different circumstances happen, and being able to give back to those who need it is what really matters. These are things that I want to do, and I know that I’m doing it for the right reasons.”

She was also able to meet her fellow classmates at the event, which she hadn’t done yet because her degree program is offered through Augusta University Online.

“I’ve met two of my classmates here that I’ve never met before, so just to put a face with a name was really awesome,” Howard said.

It was also Theophilus Gabriel’s first time volunteering at AU-MNI. He’s studying for his PhD in Applied Health Sciences within SPH and said this opportunity gave him a glimpse of the impact he’ll be able to make in his future career.

“My career plan is to be a researcher and professor with a focus on maternal-child health, but initiatives like this community outreach allow me to contribute to the broader health needs of the community,” Gabriel explained. “My goal is to improve community health and help individuals achieve their highest possible level of health and well-being.”

“This event has also exposed me to various aspects of health needs within the community,” he continued. “I’ve had the opportunity to interact with people from a wide range of backgrounds, including both Spanish-speaking and English-speaking people, and being able to communicate with them, provide support, and make even a small difference in their lives has been so rewarding.”

This event growing and flourishing over the years is a prime example of what can happen when people from all backgrounds and professions come together and use their different skillsets for the same goal of helping our neighbors. Stewart said she’s grateful for everyone who has helped make an idea become reality and hopes to see the health fair grow for years down the road.

“I’m grateful for the new people I met in the past year, the students that I’m advising and all these moments that happen during the year that build up to this,” she said proudly. “It’s about relationship building – and it’s not relationship building with, ‘What you can do for me?’ It’s what we can do for someone else – and that’s a different type of relationship.”