PHOENIX - A local program that teaches families healthy nutrition habits is getting a big boost from the city of Phoenix.
Local perspective:
"If you're ready for a story shout hurray! Hurray!"
There is a lot of fun happening at Valleywise's NutriMiniKids program in Phoenix. But alongside the laughter, is learning.
What They're Learning:
"Our NutriMiniKids class is a class specifically designed for parents and children to interact together and learn about nutrition," said Jazmin Reyes, family resource coordinator with the Valleywise Health Foundation.
The five-week series brings families together to learn how to buy healthy foods on a budget, meal prep, and more, leading up to a field trip to the grocery store. Each 60-minute class ends with parents and their kids making a nutritious snack together, which on this day, was a banana and peanut butter roll.
"The first five years of life is when the children actually build their food preference, and they build their healthy habits where they're going to into adulthood, so it's important to start now and with the parents, because the parents are their role model," said Nevenka Christiansen, nutrition health educator for Nutri Mini Kids.
Phoenix Helps:
And this program is getting a big boost from the city of Phoenix, awarded $20,000 from the city's Food Systems grant, which supports projects that empower Phoenix residents to access, and share, healthy, affordable, and culturally relevant foods.
"A healthy Phoenix starts at the family dinner table, and we're proud to help families get there," said Karen Ibarra, project management assistant for the city of Phoenix.
Why you should care:
The grant makes sure resources reach those who need them most.
"If it wasn't for our grant funders, we wouldn't be able to do these classes," a program representative said. "Our families are truly grateful to have these opportunities and free of charge."
Long-Term Impacts:
And healthy habits are formed for generations of Phoenicians to come.
"I have parents that tell me, Oh my kids have never eaten this before, and now he's asking me at home, he's asking me for more," an educator with the program said.
The Source: Information in this report was gathered from Jazmin Reyes, family resource coordinator with the Valleywise Health Foundation; Nevenka Christiansen, nutrition health educator for Nutri Mini Kids; Karen Ibarra, project management assistant for the city of Phoenix; and FOX 10 reporter Annalisa Pardo.