A group of UF students spends their Sundays taking blood pressure and giving health information to Gainesville’s homeless population.
Mary Cobty, a 19-year-old UF communication sciences and disorders sophomore, started a UF chapter of Hearts for the Homeless after hearing about the impact the organization had in her hometown of Orlando. The 40-member group has provided medical care on Bo Diddley Community Plaza every Sunday since September.
Cobty said she was inspired to start the organization at UF despite having trouble finding clinics and food banks to partner with.
“I did not like the sight of people not receiving the same medical treatment as me,” she said. “The least we could do is help give awareness to them through blood pressure screenings and directing them to a free clinic, if needed, while trying to break the stigma of the homeless to UF students.”
Jim Mossell, a UF aerospace engineering junior, said he likes the organization’s focus on heart disease, since it’s one of the leading causes of adult death in the U.S.
Mossell said helping out is rewarding even though he’s not a pre-health student.
“My favorite part is just getting the chance to talk to these people and hear the amazing stories they tell,” Mossell said. “It amazes me how people who may be having a hard time at this point in their life can still have such a positive outlook.”
Leon Bradley, a homeless man who was born and raised in Gainesville, said he’s attended the screenings since the organization started working on the plaza, he said.
“I have had my blood pressure checked with them several times,” Bradley said. “My issue is cholesterol, but it was good to know I had a normal blood pressure.”
Steve Mclain, a Gainesville resident, said he knew of his high blood pressure before the screenings.
“I was put on medicine for it a few months ago,” Mclain said. “Getting my blood pressure checked again lets me know if the medicine is working.”
The organization’s presence in Gainesville has provided people like Mclain with a health opportunity that was not previously there, Cobty said.
“Seeing my work come to life, seeing all of the volunteers that show up and seeing all of the people willing to take their blood pressure really warmed my heart,” Cobty said. “Those memories help motivate me to do better and expand on this organization within Gainesville.”
Rianna Haniff, a 20-year-old UF biochemistry and molecular biology junior, conducts her first blood pressure screening on Steve Mclain, a Gainesville resident. The screenings have taken place every Sunday since September and are a part of the new UF chapter of the organization Hearts for the Homeless.
