SBC Co-sponsors “GreenSpring: Healthy Living Expo” April 19

SUZANNE RAMSEY
College relations staff writer

Sweet Briar College, in cooperation with Mind Body Studio in Lynchburg, will present “GreenSpring: Healthy Living Expo” 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, April 19 at the Lynchburg City Armory. Admission is a $1 donation.

Vendors, everything from health food stores and local produce and meats to outdoor enthusiasts and wellness groups, will offer their products and services. Rebec Winery also will have wine tastings for $5.

Mind Body Studio’s Mike Cundiff envisioned GreenSpring more than four years ago, but the seeds for the event were planted long before that. In the 1960s, he read Rachel Carson’s “Silent Spring,” a book that, as he puts it, “is now playing itself out on a global scale.”

“[I] was taken aback by how it depicted a world in the not-so-distant future devoid of abundant life due to the ever-rising levels of pollution generated by man’s drive to excel in his capitalistic ventures,” Cundiff said.

“As you might imagine from the title, the book doesn’t paint a very positive picture regarding the impact that humans, in general, have on the environment.”

When he started to envision a health and wellness fair for the greater Lynchburg area, Cundiff began to realize that a “multi-dimensional approach” was necessary to encourage a healthy and Earth-friendly lifestyle.

“We have to become engaged on not only an environmental level, but on a social and economic level as well,” he said. “With the limitations of our current political system, we stand a greater chance of creating positive change by how we spend our money and [by] making educated decisions regarding lifestyle than by waiting for government to do the right thing.”

For more information on GreenSpring, contact Cundiff at 528-1100 or visit Mind Body’s Web site.