Salinas Valley Health Presents MEGA Heart and MEGA Lungs at the California International Airshow Salinas

Media Contact: Karina Rusk
831-759-1843

SALINAS, CA, March 12, 2019- Salinas Valley Health will feature the MEGA Heart and MEGA Lungs inflatable walk-though exhibits at the California International Airshow. MEGA Heart and MEGA Lungs are large, inflatable, interactive education models designed to teach people about the risks, symptoms and causes of many diseases such as heart disease and lung cancer. The exhibits will be featured on the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Runway Saturday and Sunday March 23 and 24.

“We are proud to introduce the MEGA Heart and MEGA Lungs exhibits at this year’s Airshow,” says Pete Delgado, President/CEO of Salinas Valley Health. “These are tools our health care providers will use to teach kids about heart health and the dangers of smoking tobacco products and vaping which has become an epidemic.”

“E-cigarettes contain nicotine, a very addictive drug found in traditional tobacco cigarettes,” says Marguerite Walker, Respiratory Care Practitioner at Salinas Valley Health Medical Center. “One pod contains roughly the same amount of nicotine found in 20 cigarettes. It’s a dangerous drug. My Respiratory Care colleagues and I look forward to getting this important message across to hundreds of students.”

Approximately 450 middle school students from Salinas, Soledad, Greenfield and King City will be taking tours of the exhibits on the STEM Runway. More than 100 students from Youth Orchestra Salinas (YOSAL) will also be participating in the private STEM Runway tours.

Salinas Valley Health joins Hartnell College, the Naval Postgraduate School, The Monterey County Sheriff’s Office, the Watsonville Police Department, the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office, KION 5 46, the Monterey Bay Aquarium, the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI) to provide interactive exhibits focused on how they use science, technology, engineering and math to serve our community.

The California International Airshow Salinas started its STEM program in 2012. The private STEM tours take place Saturday and Sunday starting at 8:15 am and ending at 11:30 am. The STEM Runway opens to the public at noon. It’s located next to the Kids Zone at the Salinas Municipal Airport.