Second Harvest is excited to share with you a brand new nutrition program that is aimed at empowering the next generation in our community towards healthy food and lifestyle choices.
Passion For Produce -Youth INC (Implementing Nutritional Care) is a free nutrition education program that empowers teens to make smart food choices for themselves and promote healthy dietary habits for others at home, among their peers, and within our community.
Made possible in part by a grant from the Watsonville Rotary, this new Second Harvest program is engaging south Santa Cruz County youth to be peer ambassadors in food access and distribution while educating them about diet and prediabetes. Teens will work with Second Harvest nutrition staff to learn about food distribution in their community, how to prepare healthy foods, and gain the confidence to disseminate nutrition education all while developing their leadership skills for a lifetime of civic participation.
Watsonville High School students Alondra Ortiz and Kyanna Lucas piloted Youth INC as their Senior Community Action Project. “Alondra and Kyanna’s enthusiasm, creativity and compassion was off the charts” according to Second Harvest Nutrition Program Manager and Youth INC developer, Julio Neri Andrade. As part of the pilot, they taught nutrition classes and distributed fresh fruits and vegetables at Amesti Elementary School in Watsonville. They also distributed Second Harvest Hotline cards to assure that everyone, including staff, know where to call if they or someone they know is facing food insecurity.
Nutrition programs like Food For Children, Passion For Produce, and Passion For Produce-Youth INC are a war chest of prevention in the battle against food insecurity and the toll that poor nutrition takes on a community. Through programs like these, Second Harvest continues to be committed to making sure everyone has an opportunity for a productive, healthy, happy life.