Black Family Wellness Expo coming to Baltimore this weekend
EARLY NEXT WEEK. A POWERFUL ANNUAL COMMUNITY EVENT FOCUSED ON HEALTH, EDUCATION AND EMPOWERMENT IS RETURNING TO BALTIMORE THIS WEEKEND. THE HARBOR, CITY AND BALTIMORE CHAPTERS OF THE LINKS INCORPORATED ARE GEARING UP FOR THE 2026 BLACK FAMILY WELLNESS EXPO. AND JOINING ME NOW TO SHARE WHAT’S IN STORE IS CO-CHAIR OF THE EXPO, DOCTOR HASSAN2 BLAKE, ALONG WITH COPPIN STATE UNIVERSITY FRESHMAN BASKETBALL PLAYER AND CKD TRAINEE PRINCESS WACHUKU. THANK YOU BOTH FOR BEING HERE. THANK YOU FOR HAVING US. THE FIRST FEW QUESTIONS ARE FOR YOU, DOCTOR BLAKE, WHAT IS THE BLACK FAMILY WELLNESS EXPO AND WHY IS IT SO IMPORTANT FOR THE COMMUNITY? THE BLACK FAMILY WELLNESS EXPO IS A FREE COMMUNITY HEALTH EVENT THAT PROVIDES HEALTH SCREENINGS AND HEALTH RESOURCES TO THE BALTIMORE COMMUNITY. SO WHAT IS THE THEME THIS YEAR AND WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO HIGHLIGHT THIS PARTICULAR THEME? WELL, WE HAVE PARTNERED WITH VANTIV THIS YEAR TO PROVIDE KIDNEY HEALTH INFORMATION TO BALTIMORE COMMUNITIES. AND THIS IS REALLY IMPORTANT BECAUSE MANY PEOPLE DON’T KNOW THEY HAVE KIDNEY DISEASE. AND IN THE BLACK COMMUNITY IN PARTICULAR, WE HAVE FOUR TIMES MORE LIKELY WE’RE MORE LIKELY TO DEVELOP KIDNEY FAILURE. RIGHT? RIGHT. AND OFTEN, AS YOU SAID, DOES NOT GET DIAGNOSED UNTIL IT’S TOO LATE. RIGHT? RIGHT. SO WHAT TYPES OF RESOURCES AND SERVICES CAN FAMILIES EXPECT WHEN THEY ATTEND? WELL, IF WHEN YOU COME THIS SATURDAY, YOU CAN EXPECT FREE SCREENINGS, FREE HAIRCUTS, FREE INTERNET ACCESS FROM COMCAST. THIS IS REALLY GOING TO BE A COMMUNITY EVENT. YEAH. OKAY, PRINCESS, YOU BRING A REALLY UNIQUE PERSPECTIVE AS A STUDENT ATHLETE AND A CKD TRAINEE. WHAT EXACTLY IS CKD TRAINING? SO CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE IS THE LOSS OF YOUR KIDNEY FUNCTION OVER TIME. AND I GOT INVOLVED WITH THE HELP OF VINNYTSIA AND THE LINKS INCORPORATED, I WAS ABLE TO TRAIN ABOUT 50 PEOPLE ABOUT KIDNEY DISEASE. AND IN THOSE 50 PEOPLE I WAS ABLE TO TRAIN MY TEAMMATES AS WELL. SO I WAS ABLE TO TRAIN MY TEAMMATES AND TALK ABOUT THINGS LIKE WHERE THEIR KIDNEYS WERE, HOW TO PREVENT KIDNEY DISEASE, TREAT KIDNEY DISEASE. AND I WAS ALSO ABLE TO INVITE THEM TO THE EXPO THIS SATURDAY. WONDERFUL. WHY IS IT IMPORTANT FOR YOUNG PEOPLE TO BE EDUCATED? I BELIEVE IT TEACHES YOUNG PEOPLE HOW TO TAKE CARE OF THEIR BODIES FROM AN EARLY AGE. IT TEACHES YOUNG PEOPLE ABOUT PREVENTION AND ABOUT TREATMENT AS WELL, AND IT OFTEN HELPS YOUNG PEOPLE OFTEN CARE ABOUT THEIR HEALTH AS WELL. ARE YOU INTERESTED IN THE MEDICAL FIELD? YES, YES. GOOD FOR YOU. SO WHAT IMPACT ARE YOUR ARE YOU BOTH HOPING TO HAVE FOR FAMILIES COMING THIS WEEKEND? HOPEFULLY FAMILY FAMILIES WILL BE ABLE TO FIND THE RIGHT RESOURCES THAT THEY NEED. ABOUT KIDNEY DISEASE, HOPEFULLY GET SCREENED COMING THIS SATURDAY AND ADVOCATE NOT ONLY FOR THEMSELVES, BUT FOR FAMILIES, FOR PEERS AND SO ON. WE REALLY WANT PEOPLE TO FEEL EMPOWERED LEAVING THIS EXPO. SO WE INVITE EVERYONE TO THE BLACK FAMILY WELLNESS EXPO. IT’S FREE. IT’S OPEN TO ALL. IT’S THIS SATURDAY, 10 A.M. TO 3 P.M. AT THE VILLAGE OF MONDAWMIN MALL. RIGHT. AND AS YOU WERE SAYING, KIDNEY DISEASE IS JUST REALLY VERY PREVALENT. YES. AND SO YOU COULD REALLY BE HELPING SOMEBODY OR A FAMILY MEMBER OF SOMEONE REALLY TAKE CARE OF THEIR HEALTH. SO IT DOESN’T LEAD DOWN A DIFFICULT PATH FOR SURE. YES. THANK YOU SO MUCH. THANKS FOR HAVING US HERE. AND THE BLACK FAMILY WELLNESS EXPO, AS WE SAID, IS FREE, OPEN TO THE PUBLIC THIS SATURDAY, MARCH 21ST AT THE VILLAGE OF MONDAWMIN MALL. AND FOR MOR
Black Family Wellness Expo coming to Baltimore this weekend
Updated: 1:13 PM EDT Mar 18, 2026
A powerful, annual community event focused on health, education and empowerment is returning to Baltimore this weekend. The Harbor City and Baltimore chapters of Links Incorporated are gearing up for the 2026 Black Family Wellness Expo. Joining WBAL-TV 11 News to share what’s in store, is co-chair of the expo Hassanatu Blake along with Coppin State University freshman, basketball player and Vantive CKD Trainee, Princess Nwachukwu.
BALTIMORE —
A powerful, annual community event focused on health, education and empowerment is returning to Baltimore this weekend.
The Harbor City and Baltimore chapters of Links Incorporated are gearing up for the 2026 Black Family Wellness Expo.
Joining WBAL-TV 11 News to share what’s in store, is co-chair of the expo Hassanatu Blake along with Coppin State University freshman, basketball player and Vantive CKD Trainee, Princess Nwachukwu.
