We all are looking forward to Thanksgiving Break (only nine more days, not that I’m counting) — spending time with family and friends, the holiday shopping, football, and of course the glorious FOOD. Don’t worry, alternative comfort food recipes are on their way, but first I thought we would talk a little bit about helping out those who do not always have the chance to indulge during the Holiday Season. Luckily, I had the help of our fabulous dietician, Brooke P. when it came to finding more ways to get involved. In this piece, Brooke talks about Second Helpings, an organization in the Indianapolis area aiming to help those struggling with food insecurity — a state when someone has limited access to healthy and safe foods. I found this information helpful and touching and I’m so excited to share it with you!
Brooke P’s Input on Second Helpings
As the weather turns colder and the days have gotten shorter, I am prepared to write an entry on “healthy comfort food.” Unfortunately, the thought of home-made chili, chicken noodle soup and mac-n-cheese also reminded me of an event I attended last month that I feel compelled to say a few words about first (I’ll get to the comfort food recipes soon – I promise!).
I was invited to attend a focus group by some marketing students who were working on a project for a local, non-profit organization, called Second Helpings. What struck me about this organization was that it reminded me of a similar organization (well known to students in Ann Arbor, Michigan, where I went to graduate school), called Food Gatherers. As a fairly new dietitian in the Indianapolis area, I am, admittedly, not as familiar with all of our local resources, and I had not heard of Second Helpings. However, its mission tugged at my background not just as a dietitian, but also as student of public health, and as we enter the ‘season of giving,’ I thought this would be a good time to help them create awareness about another food-related issue — food insecurity.
Food insecurity is defined as, “Limited or uncertain availability of nutritionally adequate and safe foods or limited or uncertain ability to acquire acceptable foods in socially acceptable ways.” About 20% of families in Indiana live with food insecurity which means they struggle to put healthy meals on the table every day. What better way to give back to the local community (and fulfill any remaining volunteer requirements) than to spend some time helping a local organization like Second Helpings?
The mission of Second Helpings is, “Transforming Lives through the Power of Food,” and it is dedicated to three things: Food Rescue, Hunger Relief and Culinary Job Training. To fulfill its mission, the organization depends on the local food and restaurant community to donate leftover (but still fresh) food which it “rescues” and then transforms into healthy meals — all with the help of volunteers! To put this in perspective, in 2013, Second Helpings rescued more than 2 million pounds of fresh produce, meat and prepared foods. In addition, Second Helpings also provides a 10-week, intensive culinary training program to prepare unemployed and underemployed adults for careers in the food service industry. To support their success and independence, students in the culinary training program also learn important life skills like financial literacy and job interview skills.
An idea of what that do. Looks like fun to me!
So, as you think about how and what you might want to “give” this holiday season, I encourage you to think about giving some of your time to local organizations that help those who are food insecure (Besides, you might just learn how to make some amazing comfort food of your own!). Second Helpings is only one of many local organizations that accept volunteers and food donations, and I do not want to neglect any of the other incredible organizations in the greater Indianapolis area that provide, among other things, food and shelter to those in need. A list of some of the other places you can volunteer and help those who are food insecure can be found at, homelessshelter.org.
Happy Helping!
Thanks, Brooke! If any of you have any questions or could see yourself volunteering for a place like this, please feel free to contact me at bbuckner@butler.edu. I’m sure we could get something figured out!
