If color is any measure of health, Island County’s public health van is bursting with vitality.

Island County Public Health acquired the former Island Transit van last May through the agency’s surplus grant program that awards retired vehicles to island nonprofit organizations.

“This van will be a fabulous way for us to provide direct outreach to the community. We are thankful to our many community partners for this excellent opportunity,” Suzanne Turner, Island County Public Health Community and Family Health Services director, said of the van.

The newly renovated van will allow Island County Public Health to show a bright and mobile presence throughout the county, providing health education and basic screening at various locations throughout the community, according to a press release.

Turner hopes the van’s presence will create an awareness in the community about public health issues. The van will act as a mobile office that will carry a folding table, chairs and health literature. Instead of a narrow focus on specific issues, Turner hopes to gather information about what health issues affect Island County communities.

Public health officials are currently on Camano Island with the van, which will be in Oak Harbor during June and July, she said. The vehicle has no real schedule, Turner said, although the bus will be in the Wal-Mart parking lot on Thursdays and at the Oak Harbor Farmers Market.

Community members provided donations to makeover the vehicle’s exterior with an vivid paint job. Westar Solutions, a Burlington-based business, provided free labor for the job.

“That’s the most elaborate paint job I’ve ever seen,” said Meghan Heppner, executive assistant for Island Transit. Recipients of the surplus grant program are required to remove the Island Transit logos, she said, adding that most of the vehicles remain white.

For more information about Island County Public Health, visit www.islandcounty.net/health, or call 679-7350.