Area women will have a chance to learn more about health issues, while growing in mind, body and spirit during the day-long Flourish Women’s Expo, on May 21, 2011, at Harrah’s Cherokee Resort Events Center. The highlight of the event, sponsored by MedWest health system, will be the keynote speaker, Maya Angelou.

The list of Angelou’s published verse, non-fiction, and fiction includes more than 30 bestselling titles. A trailblazer in film and television, she wrote the screenplay and composed the score for the 1972 film “Georgia, Georgia.” Her script, the first by an African-American woman ever to be filmed, was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize.

She has appeared on television and in films, including the landmark television adaptation of Alex Haley’s Roots (1977) and John Singleton’s Poetic Justice (1993). In 1996, she directed her first feature film, “Down in the Delta.” In 2008, she composed poetry for and narrated the award-winning documentary “The Black Candle.”

Angelou has received more than 30 honorary degrees and is Reynolds Professor of American Studies at Wake Forest University.

The Flourish Women’s Expo will offer several educational sessions throughout the day, booths and health screenings. Physicians and other medical professionals are scheduled to discuss a variety of women’s health issues, such as nutritional health, mental wellness, plastic surgery, aromatherapy, cancer and heart health.

“The expo will focus on educating women about the importance of healthy lifestyles, and the purpose will be to introduce women to the services, physicians and staff of MedWest Health System in order to serve as the primary health care provider and an ongoing resource for them,” said Teresa Reynolds, MedWest Chief Operating Officer.

Tickets are $45 and include lunch, participation in any or all of the educational sessions, lunch, a gift bag and chance to win a door prize. Twelve elite tickets will be available for $1,000 and will include an autographed personalized copy of Angelou’s latest book, “Letter to My Daughter,” and select seating for Angelou’s presentation. Dedicated to the daughter she never had but sees all around her, “Letter to My Daughter” reveals Maya Angelou’s path to living well and living a life with meaning.

Special sponsorships are available for the event. Sponsorship levels include the Great White Trillium, $5,000; Blue Ridge, $2,500; Elk Heart, $1,500; and Whipoorwill, $1,000. A limited number of vendor packages will be available for $500. Smaller sponsorships are available for families or groups of women.

Tickets for the Flourish Women’s Expo are available online at www.flourishwomen.com. For more information, complete a contact form on the Web site or call Peggy Manning, Corporate Communications Specialist for MedWest health system, at 828.452.8883.