Gathering to explore wellness

The third annual “Wellness Expo: Reclaiming Our Wellness” will be held 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 29, at Alameda House, 526 S. Alameda Blvd. in Las Cruces. Tickets are $35, $45 and $75 a person.

The expo will host more than 20 vendors and a wide range of presenters with topics that include the power of dance, breath work, hormones and weight management, generating wellness with creativity and gratitude, the power of sound, wellness and medical cannabis, the nervous system, menopause, maternal health, overdose prevention and response, spirit medicine, and cultivating wellness through the earth.

Speakers and presenters:

• Dr. Hilda Chavez, ND, a native New Mexican and natural medicine practitioner and educator whose work, inspired by her curandera grandmother in Sinaloa, Mexico, has centered on herbal medicine, cannabis education and empowering people to awaken their own “inner healer.”

• Ciarra Marrufo (a licensed psychologist, yoga therapist and sound facilitator), Michele Lemolo, Shawna Dowd and Shiloe Valles, who help people express themselves through ecstatic dance.

• Paul Braden, who has more than 10 years’ experience in the behavioral health field with a focus on breath work.

• Rosa Meraz, family nurse practitioner and owner of Meraz Family Health of Las Cruces, who works to empower women through education on hormones, weight managements and overall wellness.

• Dr. Deb Thorne, a physician associate who has a doctor of medical science degree, is an acupuncturist and is trained in integrative medicine and psychiatry, and helps women navigate menopause.

• Judy Harmon, who has 45 years of professional practice in the field of whole body/mind natural medicine and is the clinical herbalist at Mesquite Street Community Apothecary, a meditation teacher and founder/director of The Community School of Ecological Medicine.

• Stephanie Murillo, who focuses on maternity health through rematriation, kincentricity, cultural perpetuity and generational stewardship. 

• Athena Huckaby, who holds a master’s in public health degree in health policy and management with a concentration on maternal, child, sexual and reproductive health.

• Melissa Marie Lopez-Sullivan, a fifth-generation native of the Mesilla Valley and clinical director of the New Mexico Doula Association, who is a credentialed full-spectrum doula, lactation counselor and birth assistant.

• A. Billi Free, an artist, activist, singer and disc jockey who works to empower youth through art, music, creativity and community.

“The Wellness Expo brings together an incredible lineup of local and regional wellness practitioners, healthcare professionals, educators, artists and community leaders from across southern New Mexico and the Borderland who bring both professional expertise and lived experience to their work,” said event coordinator Janet Jones. “The focus is on healing, education and intentional self-care rooted in ancestral practices and community connection.”

The ticket price includes breakfast and lunch, and well as childcare, provided by Jardin de los Niños.

For tickets and more information, contact Jones at 915-401-4104 and mrs.joneseliteevents@gmail.com.