2016 Accomplishments
February 2016: From November 2015 through February 2016, Healthy Options expanded to Kennie's Markets through funding from Gettysburg Hospital Foundation, enabling 76 families to purchase fruits and vegetables at the Gettysburg, Littlestown, and Biglerville stores over fall/winter season.
February 2016: The Campus Kitchen at Gettysburg College raises $7,500 for Healthy Options through the annual national Campus Kitchen competition, Raise the Dough.
April 2016: The Gleaning Project hosted an Empty Bowls fundraising event at Gettysburg College’s Plank Gymnasium with the support of the Center for Public Service at Gettysburg College, the Gettysburg College Art and Art History Department, and South Central Community Action Programs. They received donations of soup and bread from 22 local restaurants, and donations of handmade ceramic bowls from 16 local artists. Through this event, The Gleaning Project raised $5,400 to support their efforts to distribute gleaned produce to local neighbors struggling with food insecurity.
April 2016: The Gleaning Project of South Central PA received the Distinguished Service Community Engagement Award from the Community Action Association of Pennsylvania to celebrate their accomplishments and impact on reducing food insecurity in South Central Pennsylvania.
May 2016: Adams County Farmers Market Association was awarded a USDA-Farmers’ Market Promotion Program grant in partnership with SCCAP. This two year project aims to grow key market benchmarks and expand outreach services throughout Adams, Franklin and York Counties.
May 2016: The Adams County Farmers Market Association moves to a new location from Steinwehr Avenue to Lincoln Square with a Thursday afternoon market.
May 2016: The Painted Turtle Farm expands, hosting 27 families in community plots and 20 Community Supported Agriculture shares.
May 2016: The Children's Health & Nutrition Task Force is beginning a "Healthy Choices for Kids & Adults Partner Program" in 2016. All restaurants in Adams county and neighboring communities such as Hanover were sent surveys they were invited to submit, along with a copy of their menu. Restaurants who meet at least 60% of the healthy food criteria listed in the survey will qualify for the program. Restaurants who qualify will be listed in the Healthy Dining Guide of Adams County and Neighboring Communities, will be publicized in the Adams County Local Foods Resource Guide beginning in 2017, and will be listed on the Community Wellness Connections website. As of late July, 2016 appoximately 20 restaurants have qualified for the program, based on a review of information they returned by task force members. We anticipate having the Healthy Dining Guide brochure ready for distribution in the fall of 2016.
May 2016: Gettysburg College Mathematics Assistant Professor, Kim Spayd, analyzed Healthy Options data with students from her Applied Statistics spring 2016 courses, and complied results.
June 2016: Partnering with South Central Community Action Programs and Kennie's Market, the Food Policy Council received a $26,000 grant from USDA in spring, 2016. The funds will be used to provide incentives for Adams County residents who receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits to purchase fruits and vegetables at Kennie's Market Biglerville and Gettysburg stores from January through April, 2017. SNAP Fruit &Veggie Bucks will provide a 50% discount at the point of sale for fresh produce, with a limit of $5.00 per visit. Project goals are to: a) increase produce sales at Kennie's Market by 10% ; and b) increase awareness of SNAP customers of the availability of incentives already provided at the Adams County Farmers' Markets, leading to a 10% increase in SNAP usage during the 2017 market season.
June 2016: Healthy Options grows to 101 households. 10 group leaders organized community walks for program participants in New Oxford, Biglerville and Gettysburg.
July 2016: Through partnership with Adams County Office for Aging and funding from Gettysburg Hospital Foundtaion, Senior Healthy Options expanded to include 50 additional senior citizens who received $40 per month for 3 months to be used at Adams County Farm Fresh Markets. Income guidelines are 135% to 250% of FPIG, slightly extended from Healthy Options which is 160%-250%.
July 2016: The Campus Kitchen at Gettysburg College finishes its third summer of Green Goodies where it delivered bags of fresh produce to 35 shut-in senior citizens once a week for eight weeks.
July 2016: The Gleaning Project of South Central PA erected a 12’x14’ walk in cooler at their SCCAP headquarters to more effectively distribute recovered produce to food insecure individuals. The cooler was purchased through a grant from Lush Cosmetics. All HVAC work and materials were donated by Peter Hull from Hull’s Electric.
August 2016: From August 2015 through August 2016, Adams County Arts Council partnered with Healthy Options, offering a modification of its Eat Smart, Play Hard curriculum. Three 6-session level 1 groups and two 6-session level 2 groups engaged Healthy Options families in cooking and learning nutrition concepts together. Seventeen families participated in at least level 1, with 11 families returning for level 2. Summer cooking classes are being held once/month during the June-September Healthy Options season, with open invitation to all Healthy Options participants.
September 2016: SCCAP’s Food Pantry and Gleaning Project officially opened their renovated market area, allowing food insecure members of the community to “shop” for fresh produce and groceries in an enclosed weatherproof building.
October 2016: The Gleaning Project hosted its 2nd annual World Hunger Week with the support of South Central Community Action Programs Inc. and Gettysburg College. They hosted a film screening of A Place at the Table at the Majestic Theater, hosted two Hunger Banquets (in Adams and Franklin Counties), and gleaned 18,500 lbs of produce that would have otherwise gone to waste with the help of many Gettysburg College student volunteers as well as FFA students from Chambersburg Area High School and Northern York High School.
October, 2016: The Children’s Health & Nutrition Task Force completed publication of its Healthy Dining Guide, listing restaurants in Adams County and nearby Hanover who met the task force’s nutrition criteria. Based on a review of information returned to the task force, 20 restaurants qualified to be listed in the brochure. Task force members later adapted the Healthy Dining Guide so that it could be published in the 2017 edition of the Adams County Local Foods Resource Guide.
December 2016: In 2016, The Gleaning Project of South Central PA rescued a total of 200,000 lbs of produce from 42 farms and orchards throughout Adams County as well as 42 back yard gardeners. They distributed those nutritious, delicious fruits and veggies to 14,000 community members struggling to afford enough nutritious food with the help of 45 community partners and 700 volunteers.