How Southside Collaborative delivered a masterclass in hosting resource fairs.
San Antonio, Texas — Southside Collaborative, a nonprofit serving San Antonio’s Southside and one of Health Confianza’s main partners, started out with a simple goal of bringing a health and resource fair to an area that faces many barriers to health and wellness. Thanks to invested community and partners, the first-ever Southside Collaborative’s Annual Health and Wellness Fiesta, turned into a health fair masterclass.
The event took place in October of 2025, drawing in upwards of 700 people and 65 vendors to the Rancho El Chema, a popular wedding and events venue on the Southside. Vendors delivered health screenings and vaccinations, dental checks, mammograms, kidney exams, and more.
While health and resource fairs often require months of planning and coordination, they offer a powerful way to connect communities with essential services in areas of high need. Southside Collaborative chose to host a fair in response to the Southside’s limited access to basic resources and community amenities.
“There’s a lot of food scarcity. There’s no HEB or Walmart in the area. There’s no VIA bus line. There’s no hospital. There are a lot of barriers to health and wellness,” said Edward Castillo, director of Southside Collaborative. “We decided to hold this event and try to recruit as many different vendors as possible to provide services, like free health checks.”
Given they started planning in summer, what Southside accomplished in a few short months even surprised the organizers. The momentum for the event really took off because of community involvement, Castillo said.
“I really think that this event, and the success of this event, was a beautiful example of what happened when our coalition worked in partnership with the community,” he said.
Demonstrating the impact of providing accessible health services on site, one vendor discovered an attendee had a life-threatening condition during a kidney screening. They provided medication on-site and directed them to emergency follow-up, potentially saving a life.
While the event had a serious goal to provide health services, the organizers also put emphasis on fun to attract families. There was an array of family-friendly activities, music, a dance floor, giveaways, and mascots for the children.
This transformed the event from a “resource fair” into an experience, Castillo said.
Health Confianza asked Castillo and marketing expert Donna Prado, who works with Southside Collaborative, about some of the key ingredients that led to the success of their first health fair. Below are their key takeaways:
Takeaways from Southside’s first Health & Wellness Fiesta
- Deep Community Engagement
The Community Advisory Board (CAB) played a central role—suggesting vendors, identifying venues, spreading the word, and giving real-time feedback on community needs. Community members were genuinely invested because they helped shape the event. And their involvement helped to build trust, credibility and buzz.
- Boots-on-the-Ground Marketing (Critical in Low-Internet Areas)
Flyers were handed out at churches, laundromats, businesses, football games, community events, and door-to-door because the area has limited Internet access.
Volunteers saturated the area to the point people were saying, “I’ve already heard about this.” This saturation built positive familiarity and anticipation.
- Strong Partnerships with Local Organizations
Southside ISD was a major amplifier: ads on their Jumbotron, distribution of flyers through school principals, and support from their print shop. Local businesses were engaged intentionally—buying food, printing shirts, hosting signs—building reciprocal relationships that made them eager to help.
- Choosing a Compelling Venue
The event hall was large, beautiful, and carried local curiosity (“I’ve driven by but never been inside.”). This “buzz factor” drew people who simply wanted to check it out. Ample space and parking (though parking still became an issue!) made the event feel professional and inviting.
- Making It Fun and Family-Friendly
They intentionally made the event feel like a fiesta. There were plenty of volunteer mascots (Sparky, Smokey the Bear, McGruff, etc.) There were fire trucks and other kids’ attractions, which in turn bring their parents. There were also free food tickets to keep families on-site longer
- Wide Variety of Vendors and Services
They crowdsourced vendor ideas through a shared Google Sheet. Over 75 vendors signed up; ~65 attended. They also focused on offering high-value resources: mammograms, kidney screenings, vaccinations, and wellness information.
They did plenty of follow-up with vendors to ensure high attendance and planning accuracy.
- Flexible, Multichannel Marketing Strategy
Southside spent $300 on targeted Facebook ads (English + Spanish), resulting in approximately 20K impressions. Telemundo showed up unexpectedly and even MC’d, providing major visibility. And print materials were produced affordably via Southside ISD’s print shop.
- Thoughtful Logistics & Lessons Learned
What worked:
- Evergreen marketing assets (no dates on banners so they can be repurposed).
- Weekly planning meetings.
- Good vendor communication and confirmation.
- What they want to improve next year:
- More organized parking (overflow + shuttles).
- A dedicated event webpage with maps, schedules, and vendor lists.
- Earlier planning (start in January, not July).
- A more intentional digital communication strategy with vendors, supported by a shared social media toolkit and recommended hashtags to encourage consistent, coordinated promotion.