Walk with friends and family to join the fight with the American Diabetes Association and other community partners this weekend in Smithfield.

The ADA’s “Victory Over Diabetes” community health and wellness expo will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday at the Smithfield Center, 220 N. Church St. The Christmas Store on Main Street is the presenting sponsor, along with gold sponsor Smithfield Foods, friend sponsors like Birdsong Peanuts and others in the community.

The kickoff will be a community walk from 9 to 10 a.m. around the perimeter of the center and the Smithfield Foods campus. Smithfield’s Vice Mayor Michael Smith will engage the crowd along with Deputy Police Chief Matthew Rogers, according to ADA Programs Coordinator Michelle Ellis Young.

Participants will then check out everything “Victory Over Diabetes” has to offer inside the center.

“It’s a hands-on activity that culminates our relationship with the community and allows us to celebrate in a way that takes the fear out of what diabetes is about,” Young said.

Several organizations will provide free health screenings. Eastern Virginia Medical School will screen patients for blood glucose levels and blood pressure, and Walgreens will provide flu and pneumococcal vaccines. Virginia Eye Consultants will also provide their services alongside even more organizations.

Beside the exhibitors’ rooms will be displays of wellness products and services that will offer further care and attention for those in need, Young said. There will also be local YMCA instructors demonstrating at-home fitness routines that are cheap and easy to maintain.

“They’ll show how to do things right in the comfort of your own home,” Young said.

Children will keep themselves occupied with hula hoops, coloring pages, jump rope and a few local emergency, fire and police vehicles featured in the afternoon’s Touch a Truck.

Parents will enjoy a panel discussion and keynote presentation by Donna Smith, a familiar face and Family Nurse Practitioner from Family Medical Care of Smithfield. Young said she’ll be able to relate the years she’s spent working with diabetic patients to help motivate those still living with the disease and looking to thrive.

“They will hopefully leave inspired and motivated to one, know their numbers; two, know that there are resources available; and three, continue to hope and conquer this disease,” Young said.

Call the American Diabetes Association’s Hampton Roads office at 424-6662 ext. 3283 for more information.