Latest News Local News Amy Stinnett's LiveOK- A candid look at living in Oklahoma.
Amy Stinnett's LiveOK- A candid look at living in Oklahoma.
This has been a very interesting week for me.
As an AmeriCorps volunteer, I had the opportunity to spend Martin Luther King, Jr. Day at the Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma.
In all honesty, I wasn’t exactly looking forward to it. Don’t get me wrong, I love the Food Bank and certainly don’t mind getting out of the office and doing direct volunteer service. However, I don’t love getting up really early and driving toward Will Rogers World Airport during rush hour. I also had a lot of work to do and was concerned I’d fall behind.
Little did I know it would be one of the most enjoyable and fulfilling experiences of my life. If you’ve read some of my earlier blogs, you know here at Fit Kids we see the link between food insecurity and childhood obesity and are supporters of the Regional Food Bank. I even participated in their SNAP Challenge to see if families could actually eat healthy on a strict budget.
It was a great day and I had a blast getting better acquainted with other AmeriCorps volunteers in the metro area. Together we packaged 30,774 pounds of food, which is equivalent to 23,672 meals at the Regional Food Bank.
I highly recommend you take time to volunteer at the Regional Food Bank. They are so passionate about feeding hungry Oklahomans and their passion for service is highly contagious. Jasmine Bigler, my fellow AmeriCorps staffer here at OICA, said she can’t wait to bring her daughter Josephine when she turns eight. What a great idea, right?
Here we are sorting food. It’s actually a lot of fun!
Below are a couple of links if you’d like to see news coverage of the MLK Day of Service:
What you don’t see on the news segments and what I don’t think many people are aware of is the greenhouse they have behind the warehouse where they actually grow their own produce. This is part of their Urban Harvest program, which I fell in love with immediately.
Here’s a picture of the Urban Harvest director Mason Weaver giving us the tour of the greenhouse. So fascinating!
What I adore about this program is not only do they grow and donate fresh produce, but they also focus on education, community outreach and conservation. They teach people with limited resources the organic gardening methods they use so that people can grow their own food (brings to mind the “teach a man to fish” adage).
They’re also a part of the Kids Café program. In this afterschool and summer program, children learn about nutrition and how to prepare snacks and meals. They also get to do outdoor recreation, getting out and playing games, jumping rope, playing sports and having relay races.
What a great program! What a great organization!
Here’s a link to the Urban Harvest program if you’d like more information:
http://www.regionalfoodbank.org/Programs/Urban-Harvest
We’ve also been busy, busy getting ready for legislative session next month. I’ve been attending health advocate meetings and let me just tell you, there are plenty of folks out there working hard every day to improve the health of Oklahomans. This includes the health of our mothers and babies, our mentally ill, our senior citizens, and our residents struggling with weight and its adverse affects.
Real change is not going to happen though until we see it begin to take root at the community level. That’s why we’ve planned a legislative forum on Friday, January 27th at the Ardmore Convention Center where we’ll open the floor to community members and child advocates to voice their concerns. Senator Frank Simpson (R-Ardmore) and Representative Pat Ownbey (R-Ardmore) will be there to discuss these issues with their constituents. If you are interested in being a part of this conversation, please email me: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . I’d be glad to send you more information.
