The Food & Health Network team recently participated in the Food Solutions New England (FSNE) 21-Day Racial Equity Habit Building Challenge. This challenge involved 21 days of learning and reflection on topics including but not limited to race, types and manifestations of racism, injustice in the food system, reparations, food sovereignty, and acting as an anti-racist ally. Please read below what some of our staff and AmeriCorps members had to say about their experiences with the challenge:
"The challenge was an eye-opening experience. Through resource sharing and education, it ultimately allowed me to feel more confident in addressing and speaking openly about racism and injustice in the communities I serve."
"The 21-day challenge was both engaging and enlightening. The resources shared each day, combined with the prompts for self-reflection, really helped me to bridge and interconnect my personal and professional learning around the practice of anti-racism."
"Although this was not my first experience exploring racial justice work in my life, committing to the 21-Day Racial Equity Habit Building Challenge in a professional setting is crucial and only the first step. It was packed with great resources, and reminded me to dig through and reflect on my personal experiences and biases. While we are only at the beginning of this work at the Rural Health Network, I am even more committed to continually centering racial justice in my food system work and beyond."
The FaHN team presented to all Rural Health Network staff and AmeriCorps members on experience participating in the challenge and shared resources for further racial equity learning and action. We appreciated the opportunity to share and raise awareness around these critical issues, and are committed to advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion in our work, both as a program and a broader organization. For more updates about Rural Health Network programs, see the June issue of Rural Matters.
If you are interested in accessing the resources shared during the challenge, visit FSNE's link here!
Growing Farm to School
FaHN's Farm to School team has been updating information on our website! Among the recent updates are Resources for Home Learning and Farm to School Resources, which include some recipe videos created by the FaHN team during this period of remote work.
As we continue to work remotely, the Farm to School team has been assembling and distributing grow kits at student meal distribution sites. Farm to School AmeriCorps member Nicole Kaczmarczyk created a tutorial video for students and parents detailing how to use the kit. The team also distributed scavenger hunt materials to keep students busy while not in school (pictured above). You can check out the tutorial video here!
Responding to Community Needs
During the month of May, the Rural Health Network continued its commitment to serving the Southern Tier by securing funds for the purchase of Personal Protective Equipment for our clients and food security partner organizations in Broome, Tioga, Delaware, Otsego, and Chenango Counties. Food and Health Network staff facilitated a bulk order of face masks, gloves, and hand sanitizer. This equipment was delivered to various food security organizations across the Southern Tier, including Binghamton Food Rescue, VINES, and CHOW, with an additional 15 organizations in Tioga, Otsego, and Chenango counties also receiving supplies. In total, over 14,000 masks were distributed, along with 42 boxes of gloves.
Community Health Workers in Broome, Tioga, and Delaware Counties have also begun distributing 300 Personal Protective Equipment kits to clients with chronic health conditions. These kits include masks, hand sanitizer, and dental care items for clients and their family members.
Community Health Worker Rose Peguero shared this comment from a client: We are really glad to see you after all this time. Rose also observed that smiles could be seen beyond the boundaries of masks in their eyes and their thank yous.
This project was made possible by grants from the United Way of Broome County COVID-19 Community Response Fund and the Community Foundation for South Central New York COVID-19 Fund and was supported by supplies from Wilson Dental. We would like to thank Resource Development Director Cindy Martin and Stephanie Woolever, a volunteer with the group Masking Broome County, for making cloth masks and for coordinating donations from other talented seamstresses to share with Network staff and clients. Thank you to all who contributed time and resources to keep our communities safe!
VINES: Volunteers Improving Neighborhood Environments in Binghamton Farm Share Sign Ups are open! You can find the link to sign up here.
B/S/S/T Area Agency on Aging, Inc - Per Diem Registered Dietician. Responsibilities involve travel to the Agency’s Active Living Centers throughout Bradford, Sullivan, Susquehanna and Tioga Counties monitoring food compliance at the centers, doing nutrient analysis of menu served to assure meals meet the nutrient profile of the menu to be served, validating food item temperatures, and assuring food service is of a quality deemed acceptable for service to individuals and meets food quality and food grade requirements. Learn more and apply here.
CCE of Steuben County - SNAP-Ed Nutritionist. Primarily responsible for the delivery and implementation of established public education programming to improve healthy food and lifestyle choices among SNAP-eligible families and individuals encompassing all age groups throughout the SNAP-Ed New York Southern Finger Lakes Region, with a specific focus on Steuben County. As part of the federally grant funded SNAP-Ed New York program, this position works closely with other members of the Southern Finger Lakes regional team to meet the program goals, including assisting the Senior Nutritionist and the Project Director with program implementation, evaluation, management, and marketing. Learn more and apply here.
Open Grant Opportunities
USDA Urban Agriculture and Innovation Production Competitive Grants Program
Application deadline: July 6. Learn more here.
National Farm to School Network COVID-19 Relief Fund
Application deadline: July 6. Learn more here.
Reinvestment Fund's 2020 Healthy Food Financing Initiative (HFFI) Targeted Small Grants Program
Application deadline: July 10. Learn more here.
Novartis COVID-19 Community Response Fund
Applications accepted on an ongoing basis. Learn more here.
Adirondack Foundation Special and Urgent Needs Fund
Applications accepted on an ongoing basis. Learn more here.
New York AHEC Scholars Program
Applications accepted on an ongoing basis. Learn more here.
