NEW ROCHELLE, NY — The author of the book “Is Your Hair Made of Donuts?” and a rapper who sings the praises of fresh food were part of an in-school nutrition education campaign brought to the region by the Food Bank for Westchester—the county’s largest agency leading the charge against hunger — during the second annual Eat Healthy NY Day, held in three Westchester schools.
With seminars, the whimsical book, fitness activities and a “Healthy Eating Oath,” children were given fun and engaging tools and guidance to help them make wise choices when eating, favoring vegetables and fruit over junk food.
The program travelled from the Columbus Elementary School in New Rochelle to the Richard J. Bailey School in the Greenburgh district and finally to the Mamaroneck Avenue Elementary School in White Plains.
At each school, Joy Feldman, author of “Is Your Hair Made of Donuts?” led students in taking the oath, which begins: “I promise to eat well each day and each night, I know it’s the key to growing up right!”
“Getting nutritious foods to people in need is one of our key initiatives at the Food Bank for Westchester,” said Ellen Lynch, its President and CEO. “One of the best ways we can ensure that families – and particularly children – choose healthy options is through education in conjunction with like-minded partners, like Joy Feldman and Dannon. Eat Healthy NY is a campaign that really helps get kids excited about nutritious food.”
Last year, the Food Bank for Westchester launched a partnership with Feldman to bring her Eat Healthy Rhode Island initiative to New York. “We felt that this program would be a great addition to our efforts,” said Lynch. “With the cooperation of Town Supervisor Paul Feiner and several area schools, we were able to connect in a meaningful way with hundreds of 5th graders.”
At the event, The Food Bank’s Kraft Mobile Food Pantry brought fresh fruit to each school and Dannon donated healthy, nutritious yogurt snacks. In addition, James McBride, who focuses on positive messages and goes by the name Mr. Deep Positivity, rapped about fresh food.
The Food Bank’s program is aimed at countering nutrition-related health issues in low income communities where low-cost, less healthy food options are ubiquitous. By exposing families to healthier food choices, the Food Bank hopes to stem the tide of nutrition-related ailments like heart disease and diabetes, and reduce the incidence of childhood obesity, which has more than doubled in children and quadrupled in adolescents over the past 30 years, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“Obesity has become a national epidemic, spurring a host of illnesses, including heart disease, type 2 diabetes, cancers and strokes,” said Feldman, who started the Eat Healthy Rhode Island program three years ago. “Our children must learn that ‘they are what they eat.’ Educational interventions help to encourage people to improve their diet and their well-being.”
Through the program, students were given advice on how to make smart food choices and how to handle teasing from other students for eating right. Teachers were also given an Eat Healthy NY Teachers’ Tool Kit to help them integrate lessons into their curriculum to support the message beyond Eat Healthy NY Day.
Feldman praised the Food Bank for Westchester for taking on the program.
“I was so excited when Ellen and the Food Bank came on board because now we have another state involved,” Feldman said. “My vision is to make this a national program, where the whole nation comes on board on same day to focus on children’s health.”
Eat Healthy NY Day is part of a portfolio of programs offered by the Food Bank for Westchester to support healthy lifestyles for children, families and seniors, which also includes its Kraft Mobile Food Pantry, Green Thumb produce program, Food Growing program, Kids Café’s and Backpack programs in schools and educational outreach to groups and member agencies.
The Food Bank for Westchester is one of eight food banks in New York State. It acquires, warehouses and distributes more than 7 million pounds of food annually to 230 frontline hunger-relief programs, including food pantries, soup kitchens, shelters, day care and residential programs serving the nearly 200,000 Westchester residents who are hungry or at risk of being hungry. Based in Elmsford, NY, the Food Bank is located in a 36,000sf warehouse and is home to Westchester’s largest refrigerator and freezer.