A team of National Civilian Community Corps (NCCC) volunteers worked in conjunction with the Brighton Center in Newport Kentucky on a project to build beds for children in need. While skilled in helping others these 10 young adults, ranging from 18 to 26 years of age, needed some education in taking care of themselves. Most had never lived alone and had little to no experience in grocery shopping, planning and preparing meals. They came together from all over the United States, to live in a communal space, trying to bridge the gap of not only their inexperience but also different ethnic and cultural backgrounds. They were each given a food allowance which they pooled to prepare daily meals.  However they had a hard time deciding what to buy and nutrition wasn’t one of the deciding factors. They reported that they were throwing away a lot of food that they were purchasing then not using. 

Leaders at the Brighton Center engaged the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program assistant at the Campbell County Cooperative Extension Service to work with the group. They had previously not been using any recipes when they did prepare food.  Together each week they practiced skills such as chopping, measuring, safe food handling as well as portion control, budgeting and healthy meal planning using MyPlate principals outlined in the Healthy Choices for Every Body curriculum. Using their newly acquired training as well as the annual Nutrition Education Program recipe calendar, the group took turns making the recipes for their meals back at their lodging each night. According to the person in charge of meals, “I select a recipe, I make a list of food, and each person signs up to cook or clean up, so that way each person gets to actually learn how to cook.”

The success of the program was evident not only in the improved skill level and confidence but also in knowledge of how their eating habits would affect their health and wellness. 60% of participants indicated they better understood food safety practices. According to data from a University of Kentucky Food and Nutrition Specialist, every person that receives education regarding some aspect of food borne illness prevention saves their state an estimated $1,000. Potential savings to Kentucky citizens, businesses and government, due to food safety education in this Healthy Choices for Every Body series is $6,000. 

Half of the group started making a list before shopping and 60% of participants indicated they ate more vegetables each day.  When contacted several months after the series ended, the group leader said “I definitely tasted and thoroughly enjoyed certain vegetable I never tried before and honestly I now use them on a daily basis. If it weren’t for the class I would have never fell in love with kale and carrots! Those are my two go-to’s when I’m cooking…I feel so much healthier since the class…we all agreed to eat more fruits and veggies and it’s still a thing we all do!”  UK College of Ag media staff highlighted the success of the group in a feature article and video https://news.ca.uky.edu/article/uk-extension-supports-americorps-team-valuable-lessons-cooking

The biggest accomplishment of the program was that these young adults who were so generously donating their time in helping others were taught skills that they would take with them to share with those whose lives they touch well into the future.