Building Stronger Summer and Afterschool Meal Programs conference call next week

Building Stronger Summer and Afterschool Meal Programs
January 20, 2015 – 12:00 noon eastern
Register here...

This month the Food Research and Action Center is combining the Summer and Afterschool Meals Matter conference call series into one informative call about Let’s Move! Cities, Towns and Counties (LMCTC), a part of First Lady Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move! initiative, and how cities, towns and counties participating in this initiative are making efforts to serve children healthy meals year-round through the Summer and Afterschool Meal Program. LMCTC sets out to address the nation’s childhood obesity epidemic through five measurable and achievable goals. Goal III: Smart Servings for Students encourages cities to offer the Summer and Afterschool Meal Programs in their communities. Join FRAC and the National League of Cities (NLC) to learn about LMCTC and how elected officials are addressing child hunger and nutrition issues through the Summer and Afterschool Meal Program.

2014 SNAP CUTS HURT

Late in 2013 Congress cut benefits for the 47 million Americans who receive SNAP assistance. One year later, a report by Food Bank for New York City finds New Yorkers have lost more than 56 million meals as a result of these cuts. That’s more meals lost in the city alone than a typical food bank distributes in a year. Approximately 75% of the 800 or so emergency food providers in Food Bank For New York City’s network saw an immediate increase in the number of visitors on their lines. One year later, food pantries and soup kitchens are reporting food shortages at an alarming rate. This past September alone, 60% of food pantries and soup kitchens reported running out of food for complete pantry bags or soup kitchen meals. Thirty-seven percent reported having to turn people away and 61% reported reducing the amount of food in their pantry bags because of food shortages.

Source: MSNBC, 12/31/14, 2014 SNAP Cuts

Setting a vision...and a plan!

The GardenShare Board of Directors met for four hours Friday evening and another four hours on Saturday morning for our annual planning retreat.

What an amazing group of volunteers, to dedicate this big a chunk of time to this work!  And I heard such great things from them about their passion for the work and their willingness to work hard to further GardenShare's mission.

We got a lot done, which will help us lay out a realistic work plan for the year ahead.

One of our big goals is to engage more people in our work.  We are looking for people who are both passionate about the local food movement and passionate about ending hunger.  GardenShare's work sits right at the intersection of those two issues.

If you might be interesting in volunteering with GardenShare to help us spread the message of our work, feel free to e-mail me and I can tell you more!

Gloria

LOW-INCOME KIDS EAT BETTER AT SCHOOL

The fruits and vegetables provided at school deliver an important dietary boost to low-income adolescents, according to a recent study. Researchers from Dartmouth found that fruit and vegetable intake was higher among low-income adolescents on days when they ate meals at school compared to days when they were not in school. The opposite was true for high-income adolescents who consumed fewer fruits and vegetables when school was in session, compared to summer months. While in school, all students consumed fruits and vegetables with similar frequency regardless of income level.

Source: Science Daily, 12/11/14, School Food

ONE MILLION TO LOSE SNAP BENEFITS IN 2016

Roughly 1 million of the nation’s poorest people will be cut off SNAP during 2016, as many states will see the return of a 3-month limit on SNAP benefits for unemployed adults aged 18-50 who aren’t disabled or raising minor children.  The 3-month limit was enacted as part of the 1996 welfare reform law; it applies to childless people who aren’t employed or in a work or training program for at least 20 hours a week—even if their state operates few or no employment programs and fails to offer them a spot in a work or training program — which is the case in most states. The limit hasn’t been in effect in most states for the past few years as the law allows states to waive the limit in areas with high and sustained unemployment.  But as the recession recedes and unemployment rates fall, fewer and fewer areas will qualify for waivers.  Just a few states will qualify for statewide waivers in 2016, resulting in approximately 1 million SNAP recipients losing their benefits to the time limit. 

Source: Center for Budget and Policy Priorities, 1/5/15, 2016 SNAP Cuts

MALNOURISHED AND DON’T KNOW IT

Researchers were surprised to find that more than half of the adults 65 and older who turned up in one emergency room were either malnourished or at risk for malnutrition. They found that 22 of the 138 adults examined (16%) were malnourished, and 17 of the 22 had never before received a diagnosis of malnutrition, even though almost everyone in the study had a primary care physician. Overall, 83 of the adults studied (60%) qualified as either malnourished or at risk for malnutrition.  How could that happen? Depression was a big factor: 52% of the adults found to be malnourished had symptoms of depression. But 33% reported difficulty simply buying groceries, a problem that probably could be alleviated by greater access to food stamps and food charities,

Difficulty eating, usually because of tooth pain or denture problems, was found in 38% of the malnourished.

Source: Tampa Bay Times, 12/10/14, Malnourished Seniors

Farm to School webinars

The National Farm to School Network has some great webinars coming up...

Outdoor Classroom Management

January 15, 4 p.m. EST - Hosted by edWeb

Along with abundant opportunities for learning and fun, outdoor classrooms come with a unique set of challenges, particularly in relation to classroom management. How do I focus students' attention on the lesson when the squirrels are dropping walnuts from the tree? How do I convince 30 students that the garden is a learning environment and not a space for extra recess time? Whitney Cohen, Life Lab’s Education Director, will use stories, photos and discussion to share tried-and-true tips for managing large groups of students in an outdoor environment.

Telling your story: Share your success with the media, the community and funders

February 10, 1 p.m. EST

Your school garden is growing, your lunch line is local, and your community's health and economy are improving thanks to farm to school. But if you don't learn how to tell your story in a concise, compelling way, interest in your program could stagnate. Maintain momentum for farm to school within your community through media relations, funder outreach and community partners with persuasive success stories. The National Farm to School Network's communications staff, Chelsey Simpson and Stacey Malstrom, will offer simple best-practices and easy tips for sharing your story and finding your audience. The 20-minute presentation will be followed by a Q&A session.

Making change: How you can support farm to school policy this spring

March 10, 1 p.m. EST

Although the Child Nutrition Act (known as CNR) isn't set to expire until September 30, the action in D.C. is happening now, and we need your help. Join us to learn how farm to school legislation is progressing as part of CNR and what you can do to help make sure farm to school gets the support it needs from Congress! We will cover actions that anyone can take to join the effort and become an effective advocate for farm to school. The 20-minute presentation will be followed by a Q&A session.