Wellness with a purpose

A diverse range of exhibitors, workshops, and presentations focused on holistic health, wellness and personal development will all be on offer on Sunday, October 11 at St Mary’s Parish in Echuca.

Proceeds from the festival will help support local charities — along with an annual donation to a foundation in Bali that provides prosthetic limbs.

Organiser Annette Prendergast has personally supported the foundation for more than 13 years, and said the festival had allowed the group to make a real, hands-on difference.

Following last year’s festival, the group was able to provide 50 food parcels, five wheelchairs, prosthetic legs and mobility aids during its trip to Bali.

“When we took the donations over, the people there cried,” Ms Prendergast said.

“They were so desperate.”

The festival was founded by a group of local women with a shared passion for raising money for smaller charities that often go unnoticed.

Ms Prendergast said the festival was designed to give people a chance to spend a day looking after themselves while supporting others.

“What we supply to the community is a day out of nurturing themselves,” she said.

This year’s event will feature tarot readers, mediums, massage therapists, lymphatic drainage specialists and a range of other wellness practitioners, alongside local businesses offering products such as crystals, handcrafted soaps and homemade goods.

The $10 entry fee, or $5 for pensioners, goes directly towards the festival’s fundraising efforts for local and international charities.

Stallholders also pay a fee, with many donating items or services towards the event’s raffle.

The festival will run from 10am to 4:30pm, with every dollar raised going towards causes that truly make a difference.

“The more that we can get, the more we can give,” Ms Prendergast said.

“Come along, expand your horizons, connect with like-minded people and discover new ways to nurture your mind, body and spirit.”