Some kids spend their whole summer vacation sitting on the couch and overindulging in sweets and unhealthy snacks. Others don’t eat much at all when they can’t go to their school cafeteria for two meals per day. In either case, those kids would benefit from a trip to the Macon County Public Library.
Kim Terrell, an agent with the Macon County Cooperative Extension who specializes in family and consumer sciences, has been teaching a class on nutrition for kids at the library for the past several weeks. Kids in the class go through a quick exercise regimen and then learn how to make a healthy snack. The class started out small, but as the summer has progressed, more opportunities have become available, and more families have decided to give it a chance.
“The first week, I may have only had three or four kids,” Terrell said after last Thursday’s class. “But as things have opened up more, and word of mouth has spread, it’s grown a lot. I think we had 12 or 15 today.”
As with many Cooperative Extension programs, the class is a great fit for anyone with a home garden. One week, Terrell used fresh grown tomatoes from the library’s own garden to make a salad, showing the kids exactly where their food comes from and giving them a sense of the work that it takes to feed them. There are options for those without a green thumb as well, like last week’s yogurt parfaits with berries and granola. These ingredients can be picked up from any local supermarket, but they also bring a sweet, creamy flavor without as many empty calories as candy or ice cream.
“It helps them learn good habits,” said Terry Stamey, who brought a student to last Thursday’s class. “It shows them that sweet can still be healthy if they know the right way to eat.”
The class also gives families an opportunity to pick up a bagged lunch from the library as part of their summer lunch program. Since June, the library has been giving free lunches to kids under 18 in conjunction with the extension and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Food insecurity is a big problem in Macon County and kids are especially vulnerable during the summer when they can’t get lunch at school. A nutrition lesson and a healthy meal on a summer afternoon can make a big difference to a hungry child.
“Food insecurity is a major issue here, especially in the summer, and we want to help,” said youth services supervisor Tabitha Jones. “[The library and the extension] make for a good partnership.”
For more information on services provided through the Macon County Public Library, call 828-524-3600 or visit www.fontanalib.org/franklin.