Village Market hosts Wellness Fair for first time since COVID-19

Alana Crosby

Editor-in-Chief

On March 16, the Village Market hosted the first Wellness Fair since before the COVID-19 pandemic. The event was organized by Lisa Reynolds, the Village Market vitamin department supervisor, as a way to reach the community and spread awareness about natural options offered at the store.

The event featured product representatives for sev - eral brands sold at the Village Market, along with the chance to win gift baskets and try free samples.

Reynolds wanted to hold the fair for several reasons. In an interview with the Accent, she said during the COVID-19 pandemic, grocery stores were considered heroes, often continuing to work while a lot of businesses closed down for lack of workers. However, due to inflation, Reynolds said, rising prices have decreased grocery store popularity.

“[Grocery store employees] were here literally risking our lives, and we were here, especially wellness department people,” Reynolds said. “But all of a sudden now we're the bad guys because prices are higher. So, I thought it would be … a good way to remind people that we're an asset to the community. ” Reynolds said the Wellness Fair gave community residents an opportunity to try new products they would not usually try, especially considering inflation.

“I think we're in the highest inflation in 45 years, and people are hurting,” Reynolds said. “And I reason that if I have the ability to get free products in people's hands, it would bless them. … If inflation is really high, you're not likely to maybe try something you've never tried before. So, getting either the samples or the full-size free product in their hand gives them the ability to try something new that they might have been afraid to.”

According to Reynolds, the

Counseling Center sees increase in attendance over the past two years

Emily Morgan Staff Writer

The number of students who use counseling services has increased over the past two years, and so has the symptom severity, according to Amy Ortiz Moretta, counseling services coordinator.

Moretta stated in an email to the Accent that this increase can be attributed to multiple factors such as COVID-19, national trends and a strong decrease in social stigma toward mental wellness, as well as many other personal struggles.

The Counseling Center has conducted 542 counseling sessions since Jan. 9, according to Moretta. In addition to these sessions, Moretta explained, counseling services also include classroom presentations, along with collaborations with campus resources and mental health wellness events like Healthy Minds Quality Enhancement Project (QEP).

The Counseling Center also has an Instagram account that the staff uses to reach students, with counselors on call at all times to respond to stu- dent crises. Student Support Services also launched in-dorm counseling services during the Winter 2021 semester to give students more options for counseling, according to a previous Accent article.

“The stigma attached to counseling is not as powerful; it is now seen as an extension of wellness,” Moretta said. “Our students are juggling many overwhelming challenges. The counselors help process loss, death, divorce, anxiety, depression, break-ups, questions of identity, overthinking and lack of motivation. These are just a few of the topics we help the students process in counseling.”

Regarding the effect of COVID19 on the number of students who use counseling services, Moretta said, “Illness and isolation have impacted the way we relate to others. We are still learning about the long-term effects of COVID-19, and the social, emotional, psychological and physical effects have yet to be determined.”

Moretta said going forward, the department will continue to collaborate with the Healthy Minds QEP to create educational and entertaining programs for the students.

“We also collaborate with the University Health Center, Disability Support Services, Ministry and Mission department and Academic Support department to ensure that students' emotional, educational, physical and spiritual needs are met,” she said.

According to the Counseling Services website, the cost of its services are included in tuition. More information about the Counseling Center can be found at https:// www.southern.edu/administration/student-success/counseling. To set up an appointment with the Counseling Center, call 423 236-2782; email Lauree Fogg, the counseling center office manager at ljfogg@southern.edu; or go to the center’s location on the third floor of the Bietz Center for Student Life.

Wellness Fair

continued from page 1 fair was also a way to bring the community together and celebrate wellness. In an email to the Accent, Village Market Manager Jackie Rose wrote that the community always benefits from events like this, which include sampling, prizes, product information and discounts.

“We are planning to have more of these events with demos and deep discounts now that COVID is lessened,” Rose wrote. “Our only other hindrance to having events is lack of labor, both regular and student labor. Student labor picked up this year, but we are still down on regular full-time/ part-time help. We hope to find help and continue as soon as possible with another event.”

One of Reynold’s favorite moments from the event began when she attended a crafting event at the Collegedale Public Library and handed out flyers advertising the Wellness Fair. While there, she met a new community member who had just moved to the area and was looking for a way to connect and make new friends. She ended up going to the Wellness

Fair, where Reynolds was able to show her around.

“She was so excited,” Reynolds said. “She didn't know there was a vegetarian store in town; and I left my event to walk down the sidewalk and show her where CrumbleBerry Market is and show her the [book] store, let her go play in there. On our way, I said, ‘By the way, are you in the ladies Bible study here in town?’ And she said ‘no’ but that she was looking for one. I said, ‘Well, I know how to get you hooked up.”

Reynolds said she gave away 40 free gift baskets to those who won a drawing. The gift baskets were a courtesy from different vendors and brokers.

According to Reynolds, she has noticed a heightened interest in natural options since the pandemic.

“There is definitely a place for pharmaceuticals, but there's also a place for supplementing,” Reynolds said. “We [are] 1,000s of years away from creation, and we're not eating right off the farm. Soils are depleted, pollution is high. There's a lot of environmental threats.”

Community member Nan Williams said she has been going to the Village Market for 40 years and was happy to receive some samples that helped her with a recent cold, and also enjoyed seeing new community members visiting the store.

“I was really glad I got those samples, and it was nice,” Williams said. “I ran into somebody I had just met. We told her about [the fair]. She showed up, and I ran into her there. ... She was looking around at stuff and trying samples like I was, and she was quite excited. So that was really good to see.”

Village Market to implement biodegradable plastic bags

Alana Crosby Editor-in-Chief

The Village Market will transition from regular plastic to biodegradable plastic bags next year, which could raise prices for some deli items, according to Village Market Manager Jackie Rose.

The decision to switch occurred shortly after students raised concerns about environmental consciousness on campus.

In a previous Accent article covering the topic, Rose stated he had yet to find a paper bag that would accom- modate the size of the deli to-go boxes. At the time, Rose mentioned paper bags as a definite possibility he would look into. However, the added cost would be unavoidable, he emphasized.

“I am working with our current supplier to transition from our regular plastic bags to biodegradable,” Rose wrote in an email to the Accent.

“This move will cost the Village Market approximately $6,000 more per year. We are not going to charge for the bag at the register but are raising a couple of our best sellers margins to pay for the bags.”

According to the email, the biodegradable bags break down like tree leaves. As the Village Market already has a year’s worth of regular plastic bags printed with the store’s logo, Rose explained, the new bags may not take effect until January 2024.

Regarding student concern about the amount of Styro- foam products used on campus, Rose wrote that switching to a more recyclable option at the deli would pose a much greater cost and subsequently raise meal prices significantly.

“Since it is under the Deli budget, we would have to raise the price of the meal and not something else in the store,” Rose wrote. “Maybe they will come down in the future on the price of biodegradable three compartment trays where it would be feasible.”