By Marlo Dublin
September 8, 2015 – Earlier this year I visited P.S. 18, the John G. Whittier School, in Staten Island to volunteer at a Food Bank For New York City campus pantry distribution. While helping parents select food that afternoon I had a realization—we should bring Just Say Yes to Fruits and Vegetables (JSY) nutrition workshops to parents participating in this campus pantry program!
The first workshop was a big hit. Many parents stayed for the hour-long session after picking up their pantry bag and learned how to include more fruits and vegetables in their daily diet. We also talked about the importance of the number five for better health: eating five cups of fruits and vegetables per day from five color groups. In order to match my recipe demonstration to the food available at the pantry that day, I decided to prepare a Red Pepper and White Bean Salad for the group. When they sampled the final dish, they were surprised that it was both sweet and savory.
All the parents who took part that day were excited for the workshops to continue and I was able to book four more with the principal, coinciding with the school’s last campus pantries of the school year.
It makes sense to provide nutrition classes to parents at campus pantries so they can learn how to use the food they get from the pantry in healthy ways—knowledge and eating habits that then get passed down to their children.
Now that a new school year is underway, I’m hopeful that the JSY program will become available to more parents and families in their schools for seasons to come.
Marlo Dublin is a Just Say Yes to Fruits and Vegetables (JSY) Nutritionist who works with Food Bank For New York City member charities in Queens and Lower Manhattan