edible notables
CONNECTING THE DOTS
Local collaboration grows healthy eaters.
WRITTEN BY JEANNE LAUF WALPOLE
PHOTOS BY CHRIS HOLLOMAN
Learning about healthy eating from the farm to the table is fun and easy for area families who participate in the hands-on educational collaboration between Urban Roots and the Great Basin Community Food Co-op in Reno.
“Our basic mission is to grow healthy minds, bodies, and communities,” says Jeff Bryant, executive director of Urban Roots. “I’ve seen eating change drastically in my lifetime. We had a large garden when I was growing up.”
For the past three years, Urban Roots has offered young people firsthand opportunities to learn about how to grow and prepare healthy foods. Programs take place at its Reno farm and garden classrooms in local schools.
“We like to get kids outside. They go home dirty,” Bryant says.
Immersion sessions
Youths, ages 5 through 12, can register for weeklong immersion farm camp sessions, which run from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. periodically throughout the year. They usually take place during breaks in the academic school calendar.
After experiencing the basics of cultivation on Urban Roots’ farm, youths then can invite their families to join them at the Great Basin Community Food Co-op, where staff members teach them how to plan meals and shop for specific ingredients. Activities may include weighing and calculating the cost of homemade granola for a family of four or selecting favorite ingredients for harvest soup prepared from a specific recipe.
“I think it’s really important to know where our food comes from, and part of that is grocery shopping,” says Jolene Cook, co-manager of the co-op. By embracing the whole family in the camp experience, educators hope to build enthusiasm for healthy eating and create new family traditions around food.
Scholarships available
Urban Roots works closely with public school leaders to identify youths who could benefit from the camp experience. Scholarships are offered to those who can’t afford the $150 fee per weekly session. The scholarships are based on need, with parents being asked to simply provide letters describing their need.
Since inception three years ago, the program has grown in popularity.
“Every year, we’ve doubled in size,” Bryant says.
Enrollment in the weekly camps ran between 30 and 40 students each in each 2014 session, with about 50 total families receiving scholarship aid.
Because many youngsters aren’t exposed to the basics of food either at home or school, the need for this type of education is great, according to Cook. It’s also important because of the growing problems of obesity, heart disease, and diabetes. Cook is passionate about the co-op’s role because she sees firsthand how much it helps people.
“One of the most beautiful moments of my professional career was to see how excited and grateful one of the families was,” she says. “I didn’t realize how much of an impact this could make.”
For details on the camps, visit http://www.Urgc.org or call 775-636-5105. For scholarship information, email Jenny@urgc.org. If you want to have a look around the farm (at 3001 W. Fourth St.), you may drop by on Wednesdays and Saturdays. But call first to verify times.
Although she’s never been a gardener, Jeanne Lauf Walpole is happy to eat the healthy bounty of those who have green thumbs.
Sponsor a family!
You can sponsor a family for this program by making a tax-deductible donation to Urban Roots’ Community Supported Education scholarship fund. To contribute, visit http://www.urgc.org/#!cse-scholarship-program/c22dy or call 775-636-5105.
