Latest News Local News
Local News
Amy Stinnett's LiveOK- A candid look at living in Oklahoma.
Happy Tuesday everyone! I know you haven’t heard from me in a while and I apologize for my brief hiatus. I’m sure you know we’re smack dab in the middle of legislative session. Things were pretty crazy at first, trying to keep up with our priority bills as they moved through committee.
(I hope you've been keeping up with our legislative updates and action alerts 
)
Anyway, it's back to business as usual for me. Kind of.
Amber and I have begun looking beyond the session and into what we want to do with the rest of the year. Advocacy is of the utmost importance, but we also want to start engaging youth and empowering them to be the movers and shakers where they are.
My gears got to turning when I learned about this amazing young man from Guthrie named Mason Carter Harvey. Mason joined our Twitter conversation last week about National Nutrition Month (expressing his love for avocados). I clicked over to his Twitter account to find an incredibly inspirational story of determination and hard work.
You see, Mason was 206 pounds at the age of 11 when he decided he'd had enough of the extra weight and the teasing at school. Now Mason is 12 years old and 85 pounds lighter. Not only did he lose the weight and keep it off, but he is now motivating his family, friends, and community to do the same.
Amber and I drove out to Guthrie Sunday afternoon to see Mason in action. I never got an exact count, but I'm sure there were at least 50 people at the Masonic Temple in Guthrie climbing stairs and having fun at this event coordinated by Mason. He's just the coolest kid. We were stoked to meet him and pick his brain about his perspective on the childhood obesity epidemic and wow! Does this kid have amazing insight! We're hoping to get to work with him to help him meet his goals and to get his input on what we can do to better serve Oklahoma's children.
That being said, we are looking for kids like Mason who either want to get healthier and take others with them or are already enthusiastic about their fitness and want to share their passion with their peers. This is all still very much in the works, but I wanted to give you a heads up in case you know any young'ns with leadership skills and a love of healthy living. We've had Youth Advisory Boards before and are ready to build a new one.
We plan to have the application ready with more concrete details next month. The idea is to gather a group of kids who will start running clubs in their schools for kids who either aren't interested in competitive sports or can't afford to participate but still want to get their recommended 60 minutes of physical activity in each day. Of course, we welcome the athletes, as well. Near the end of the school year, we want them to be able to participate in the Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon, hopefully on relay teams. Who knows, though, some may want to do the 5k and some may want to run the half! I can't imagine a kid running the full marathon, but I'm certainly going to encourage them to dream big! All the while we'll be teaching them civic engagement and advocacy skills so they can make the policy changes we need to improve the health of our state.
They're not going to be the only ones running, though. I've been meaning to get back into running for over a year now and figured running with purpose was the best way to get back in the groove. We've formed a new fundraising project on CrowdRise called "Running for a reason." Check it out! We'll be running as many races in Oklahoma as we can to raise money for these kids to build running clubs and run their own races. It's super easy to donate. We'll take anything from $10 to a BILLION! Dream big, right? 
If you're a runner and you want to help create a healthier Oklahoma, starting with our children, join our team!
I'm really excited about everything that's happening here at OFKC and am eager to iron out the deets and get to work!
Amy Stinnett's LiveOK- A candid look at living in Oklahoma.
Did your mom ever make salmon patties for dinner? Mine did. Maybe you’ve made them for your family. OR maybe you’ve never enjoyed one of these delectable things.
Salmon patties are so simple and perfect for a healthy, low-cost family dinner. I found a great recipe on the www.choosemyplate.gov website along with a couple of other fun recipes to add fruits and vegetables to your menu.
The dessert is Lemon Velvet Supreme. I suggest making this first, so it can chill as you prepare the rest of the meal.
Serving Size: 1/6 of recipe
Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients:
2 cups vanilla yogurt, fat-free
3 tablespoons instant, lemon pudding mix
8 squares graham crackers, crushed
1 can (4 ounces) mandarin orange slices, drained (or your favorite fruit- um, pineapple!)
Preparation:
1. Combine vanilla yogurt and pudding mix; gently stir together.
2. Layer bottom of serving dish with crushed graham crackers.
3. Pour pudding mixture over cracker crumbs.
4. Top with mandarin orange slices or your favorite fruit.
Next, make your salad and salad dressing. The “Outtasight Salad” sounded yummy. Here it is:
Serving Size: 1 cup
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients:
2 cups salad greens of your choice
1 cup chopped vegetables (ex: tomatoes, cucumbers, carrots, green beans)
1 cup juice-packed pineapple chunks, drained, or fresh orange segments
¼ cup Dressing (see below)
2 tablespoons raisins or dried cranberries
2 tablespoons chopped nuts, any kind (or try slivered almonds)
Preparation:
1. Put mixed salad greens on a large platter or in a salad bowl.
2. In a large bowl, mix chopped vegetables and pineapple or orange segments.
3. Add dressing and stir.
4. Spoon mixture over salad greens.
5. Top with raisins and nuts.
Dressing:
¼ cup yogurt, nonfat, plain or fruit-flavored
1 tablespoon orange juice
1½ teaspoons white vinegar
Preparation:
1. In a small bowl, mix all ingredients. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
While your salad is chilling, get ready to make your Salmon Patties.
Serving Size: 1/9 of recipe
Yield: 9 servings
Ingredients:
1 can (15½ ounces) salmon, drained
1 cup whole-grain, crushed cereal or crackers
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
½ cup 1% milk
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon vegetable oil (I prefer extra virgin olive oil)
Preparation:
1. Use a fork or clean fingers to flake salmon until very fine.
2. Crumble cereal or crackers into crumbs.
3. Add cereal or cracker crumbs, eggs, milk, and pepper to salmon.
4. Mix thoroughly.
5. Shape into 9 patties.
6. In a skillet, heat oil over medium heat.
7. Carefully brown both the sides until patty is thoroughly cooked.
These are very simple recipes. They’re also cheap and delicious.
This would be a great way to get your kids in the kitchen and teach them the importance of a balanced meal. For the lemon velvet supreme, let everyone choose their favorite fruit. It’d be a great conversation starter. Ask the kids why that’s their favorite. Same goes for the salad. Let them help you choose the vegetables. Then tell them all the good this yummy food will do for their bodies.
Most importantly, HAVE FUN!
Click on the image above for more recipes that load your plate with nutrients.
More Articles...
- Amy Stinnett's LiveOK- A candid look at living in Oklahoma.
- Amy Stinnett's LiveOK- A candid look at living in Oklahoma.
- Amy Stinnett's LiveOK- A candid look at living in Oklahoma.
- Amy Stinnett's LiveOK- A candid look at living in Oklahoma.
- Amy Stinnett's LiveOK- A candid look at living in Oklahoma.
- Amy Stinnett's LiveOK- A candid look at living in Oklahoma.
- Amy Stinnett's LiveOK- A candid look at living in Oklahoma.
- Amy Stinnett's LiveOK- A candid look at living in Oklahoma.
- Amy Stinnett's LiveOK- A candid look at living in Oklahoma.
- Amy Stinnett's LiveOK- A candid look at living in Oklahoma.
- Amy Stinnett's LiveOK- A candid look at living in Oklahoma.
- Amy Stinnett's LiveOK- A candid look at living in Oklahoma.
- Amy Stinnett's LiveOK- A candid look at living in Oklahoma.
- Amy Stinnett's LiveOK- A candid look at living in Oklahoma.
- Amy Stinnett's LiveOK - A candid look at living in Oklahoma.
- Amy Stinnett's LiveOK- A candid look at living in Oklahoma.
- Amy Stinnett's LiveOK - A candid look at living in Oklahoma.
- Amy Stinnett's LiveOK- A candid look at living in Oklahoma.
- Oklahoma Fit Kids Coalition Joins Broad-Based Coalition of Health Care and Business Leaders to Advocate for a Healthy Oklahoma
- New area program aims to improve children's health
