# Tasty Thursday

Today our group spent the morning at the Wild Ramp, a year-round farmers market located in Huntington, WV. This non-profit provides a space for local farmers, merchants and artists to sell their products.  Our group was most interested in the education opportunities it provides for the community (including children!), such as cooking classes, agricultural workshops and sustainability programs.

After the store managers explained the background and history of the market, we were given a tour and the opportunity to buy the products that were sold there, including sauces, coffee, beauty products, meat and produce.  No one walked away empty-handed!

After lunch, our team split into two groups: one group returned to the church food pantry we volunteered at on Monday to help sort a large shipment of goods that were delivered.  The other group went back to School Age Connection to share an educational program for the children there.

Volunteering at the church gave us yet another opportunity to see how much of an impact this organization has on the community.  Although there were hundreds of boxes neatly packed inside the building, the volunteers said that they typically aren't there long because in a few days, they will be sorted, packed up and delivered to families in need.  It was hard for us to grasp how difficult it would have been for the small handful of regular volunteers to get all of this sorting done alone - we were glad to help!

At the School Age Connections we saw most of the kids we met earlier this week and we were able to build a stronger connection with them that will help us on our final activity with this group. We started off with an adaptation of the red light- green light game and incorporated unhealthy foods and healthy foods in the activity. Then we cut up some fruits and vegetables and had the kids go around the various stations during snack time to try new foods. The kids enjoyed both activities, but what stood out to us the most was some of the kids had never seen some of the fruits and vegetables we offered but were very engaged with the activity. Some of the kids who originally said they did not want to try something new were encouraged to try it and they ended up liking it!

We ended our day by going out for our celebration dinner!  We ate hibachi at a restaurant aptly named "Hibachi".  We loved sharing a meal in such a fun environment!

Written by Angela and Kadija

The Potager

Accessibility to fresh fruits and vegetables is imperative to a healthy lifestyles. Here in Huntington, WV, in a state that is so mountainous with a population that is so spread out, access to healthy options at an affordable price is much easier said than done. As part of our studies of the issue, our group visited a Hurricane Farm called the Potager. Being one of five organic farms in West Virginia, the Potager is a small farm where veggies such as kale, okra, and peas are grown to be sold at local cafes and with community sustained agriculture (CSA) programs. The keeper of the farm, Julie, the only full time worker, is a lovely young lady dedicated to making an impact in the community while maintaining the integrity of the earth.

To help her out, our group prepared her field for a new harvest, patched up the greenhouse tarps before this weekends forecasted frost, helped her with soil management techniques by spreading lime, cleaned up the electric fence by pulling weeds, etc. We also played with the  goat, Dixie, and prepared the high tunnel for tilling. From our experience, we have a new found appreciation for the amount of work it takes to grow fresh foods and now see some of the challenges that farmers, like Julie, face in an industrialized market. Regardless of the hard-work, there was not a frowning face in sight from our group.

But the day didn't end there. For the first time, our group had the opportunity to visit a Holler- it was very exciting! After that, we cleaned up as best we could and enjoyed a lovely Southern meal at Margaret's house. Hard work for a good cause, great food, welcome company, and teamwork all made this day by far my favorite so far.

-Natalie A. and Enoch O.

Tuesday's with Tammy

Today we had the opportunity to meet with Tammy Leonard the director of the River Valley Childcare Food Program. This program works with local daycare centers as well as "mom and pop" childcare providers throughout 6 counties in West Virginia. Their main goal is to promote the health of the children in these centers and homes and provide education and funding for nutritious meals and snacks throughout each day.

Early in the meeting Tammy showed how passionate she was about her work and her community. She painted a good picture of the challenges people in the area face and how they contribute to childhood obesity. Some of these challenges included:

• Lack of education and understanding importance of a nutritious diet
• Poverty (unable to purchase healthier, more expensive foods)
• Location
• Large distance to stores with fresh produce and healthier options
• Large distance to schools (contributes to decreased education)
• Convenience of unhealthy food (large number of fast food restaurants readily available)

This information provided important insight into the root causes of the issues we could expect to see throughout the rest of the week.

Some of our biggest takeaways after listening to what Tammy does is how important government funding to these kind of programs is because without them hundreds of kids and their families would go without healthy food leading to a myriad of issues. She is trying as hard as she can to end the cycle of unhealthy eating as a result of poverty and help kids throughout West Virginia. 

One of the programs Tammy works with in the city of Huntington is the Enterprise Daycare Center which we were able to visit this afternoon. Putting a face to the "children" Tammy talked about helping and seeing who was directly benefiting from the federal funding gave meaning to our cause. Half of our group was able to play with young toddlers while the other half worked with kids aged 2-5. It was really encouraging to see not only USDA guidelines being followed for snacks and lunch but the kids were also requesting seconds and thirds of healthier food. 

We came back to Central Christian empowered and ready to take on the rest of the week as we continue to learn more about childhood obesity in the area and learn ways to overcome it. 

Movement Monday

So things never work out quite as planned...

We were going to visit a Boys & Girls Club this morning but when we arrived, we found out that the boys and girls were in school, as their spring break starts next week.

Pastor Jackie (the pastor at our wonderful host church, Central Christian) gave us a great opportunity to volunteer with a church pantry that distributes donations of food and clothing to low income and homeless residents and families of the Huntington area.

Some of our team members worked on sorting the clothes.  Others helped to carry groceries.  Two of us sorted baby clothes and items.  Working in the clothes pantry seemed to address the issue of poverty rather than the issue of nutrition and health.  In general, we expected to see more obesity and struggles with diet.  Instead, we have consistently seen that the ongoing and underlying issue is poverty.  You can definitely see that money is a big problem in the city.  People don't seem to have the money to buy the basics.  It goes back to the first day, when before we could even unload our vans, a gentleman approached us asking for money.  It is very visible and it's saddening.

Over the course of the week, we hope to reflect on how the financial struggles people are experiencing in this area may result in poor health and diet.

In the afternoon, we went on to School Age Connections at a local elementary school.  Right when we first got there, the boys were so enthusiastic and grabbed Enoch to play football with them.  Then Ben joined as well, while the rest of the team spread out to play soccer, start circle games and check out the playground.  Afterwards, we went inside for snack time and that was when the kids definitely began to open up.  We noticed that the milk and pretzels that teachers gave to students for snack were both healthy and appealing.  During the rest of the play time, students were all over the place and so were we, which provided many great opportunities to get to know them.  We were glad to see kids being active because it is a big part of our mission this week.  School Age Connections was on point.  We are looking forward to learning more about the program tomorrow and seeing the kids again later this week!

                         

Written by Ugochi and Sonja

~Sunday Funday~

The start of our "wild and wonderful" West Virginia spring break began with a bang on Sunday morning at Central Christian Church. After eating a healthy breakfast of banana pancakes, turkey bacon, and scrambled eggs, many of us attended the church's morning service which was titled "The Fragrance of Grace". The members of the church welcomed us to the community with a fabulous pizza party luncheon after the service. We met several members of the congregation and stuffed our faces with several of the delicious desserts that they prepared. After meeting these few people we were able to get a sense of how close and compassionate this community is.

Following the luncheon, our AB team embarked on a scavenger hunt through Huntington. We searched and took pictures of various fast food restaurants, parks, and health centers. Each team walked around Pullman Square, a beautiful city center adorned with cute shops, cafes, and restaurants. When we returned to the church, we changed into workout clothes and drove to the very popular, Ritter Park. We broke off into groups - some of us went for a jog, others played a pick-up game of soccer. Luckily the rain held off Sunday afternoon and we were able to enjoy the park for a couple of hours. After breakin' a sweat, we enjoyed a delicious AND nutritious dinner of stuffed peppers! We finished the evening with a reflection of our day's activities and with a great discussion regarding our goals and mission for the upcoming week. This day provided us with an opportunity to better get to know each other and the city of Huntington before starting our service work on Monday morning :)

A billboard for an all you can eat buffet at KFC, which many of us had never seen before.

Exploring Ritter Park!

One of the many decorative trains in Pullman Square. Each was made by a different artist and portrays a different theme or story.

Written by Katie and Sarah

First 24 Hours!

At 4:30pm Team Huntington arrived at the Central Christian Church in Huntington, WV and was warmly greeted by Brian, a volunteer here at the church.  Once we were shown around, we unloaded the vans and made ourselves at home.  No trip would be complete without stocking up on a week's worth of food for the team, all of the fruits and veggies were a hit (so were the chicken fajitas we had for dinner)!

After breakfast Sunday morning, Pastor Jackie stopped by to introduce herself and talk to us about issues in the community.  She informed us about a discrimination law that had recently been overturned -- this means that businesses are no longer allowed to discriminate based on race, religion, ancestry, sex, age, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression.  Businesses in support of this action are now displaying these green signs to demonstrate equality and inclusiveness in the community.  We are happy that Central Christian Church is Open to All!

Today the church is hosting a pizza party for our group and to welcome us to the community.  We are humbled to know that they look forward to us coming every year!