“Lettuce” Help with Dinner
Be-Leaf it or not, North Country Brewery Growing Together Aquaponics and Milestone HCQU West partnered together to mix up the dinner menu – with salad mix, that is. “Lettuce Help With Dinner” kicked off Wednesday, April 13, 2022 when 29 bags were delivered to 87 participants. Pre-registered homes received healthy greens and a six-step recipe card to make a delicious, nutritious meal. Agency providers were only asked to supply the protein.
Why all the fuss around the garden variety? Data collected from IntellectAbility Health Risk Screening Tool (HRST) showed constipation is the number one diagnosis for the people in our nine counties of Western PA. Constipation is the first sign of bowel obstruction. Roughage (or fiber) has long been known to ease constipation. Education and awareness is always the biggest hurdle but we couldn’t stop there. We wanted to help provide the first bites (or steps) to better digestive health.
We included the recipe card as an opportunity for house residents to cook together. Nothing beats hands-on experience and learning in the kitchen. Cooking can lead to benefits like these:
- Develop social skills.
- Foster teamwork (right in your kitchen). People may not want to cook but they can help select groceries, set the table, measure out ingredients, tear up lettuce for salads, and be taste testers too. By involving people in an important part of the day, you help build confidence and self-worth.
- Teach the importance of cleanliness.
- Deepen food appreciation.
- Learn to plan and organize. You can practice how to think ahead and be prepared by setting out a weekly menu and grocery list.
- Practice social responsibility, in matters such as animal welfare, local produce, economy, and sustainably-sourced ingredients.
Lettuce Help with Dinner also gave us the chance to make sure our communities know about the valuable opportunities at Growing Together Aquaponics, Inc. As a transition program designed for OVR Students with disabilities, they provide on the job training in an aquaponic setting. This covers a variety of skills and experiences like fish care and maintenance, plant care, system maintenance, and retail sales skills. They also offer a financial education curriculum which can include money mapping, borrowing money, and making a personal money plan.
If you are looking for something fun to do and would like to try out the fresh produce from Aquaponics on your own, you can find them Saturdays from 9 a.m. – Noon at the Slippery Rock Farmers Market at Gateway Park. They will be there every weekend from May 14th – October 8th.
