SNAP-Ed Fosters Love of Fruit and Veg for Kids in the Garden
“The ripple effect of SNAP-Ed in just my community alone is astounding. I hosted a nutrition class at a low-income housing garden with local kids. Kids are natural helpers. They enthusiastically watered and cared for plants in their garden space not knowing they were developing a deep love for the earth and the food they grew. By the end of the nutrition class series, students were loving crispy kale chips and juicy cherry tomatoes. Creating a positive, hands-on, and truly fun environment for kids to explore food that fuels and heals them will lead to healthy and productive adults who spend their money locally, contributing to a thriving economy. In part because an educator from SNAP-Ed left an impact on them as a kid growing up in low-income housing. These ripples created by educators are being created in millions of communities throughout the United States because of SNAP-Ed and other federally funding programs at risk of losing funding. If federal funding is removed from SNAP-Ed, the kids with highest need (almost 20% of all children in Maine) will not have the same opportunities to develop a love for growing and eating nourishing food as their neighbors. SNAP-Ed works and creates lasting change – money well spent!”