Emmet County MSU Extension
3434 Harbor-Petoskey Road / Suite D
Harbor Springs, MI 49740-9587 /
Phone: (231) 348-1770 Fax: (231) 439-8933
/ E-mail:Web: www.msue.msu.edu/emmet
January 2008
Project FRESH helps families, farmers
Project FRESH and Senior Project FRESH, the farmers’ market nutrition education program, are offered through MSU Extension’s Family Nutrition Program (FNP).Both help limited-resource families learn about the value of a diet rich in fruits and vegetables and provide them with coupons they can use to buy locally grown produce at local farmers’ markets. During 2007 nearly 400 Emmet County households ate healthier and area farmers saw nearly $12,000 in income, thanks to the two programs.
The FNP staff worked directly with the Health Department of Northwest Michigan to make Project FRESH available to 210 WIC-eligible families. Enrollment classes were held at area farmers’ markets to offer young families the opportunity to meet farmers and ask questions about various produce.
Participants received $20 worth of Project FRESH coupons to purchase fresh produce. The goal of the program is to promote and support Michigan farmer markets and to encourage WIC families to eat more fruits and vegetables, with priority given to pregnant and breastfeeding women to improve their nutrition.
There were also 194 seniors from seven communities enrolled in the Senior Project FRESH program, now it its third year in Emmet County. In 2005, only 17 Michigan counties offered Senior Project FRESH, but by 2007 that number increased to 44 counties. / One senior sent a thank you card to MSU Extension that stated, “I wish to thank you very, very much for the coupons I received from Senior Project FRESH. It was a real blessing to be able to purchase fresh fruits and vegetables.”
The average Emmet County Senior Project FRESH participant is 76 years-old. Two thirds of them live alone and in 2007 they had a 92 percent Project FRESH coupon redemption rate. Project FRESH is funded by the USDA and Senior Project FRESH is supported by the USDA, the local Revenue Sharing Board, private donors and Emmet County MSU Extension.
/ Michigan State University Extension helps people improve their lives through an educational process that applies knowledge to critical issues, needs and opportunities. Offices in counties across the state link the research of the land-grant university, MSU, to challenges facingcommunities. Citizens serving on county Extension councils regularly help select focus areas for programming. MSU Extension is funded jointly by county boards of commissioners,the state through Michigan State University and federally through the US Department of Agriculture.
Making the “Parent Connection” for stronger families
In 2006 MSU Extension Emmet County asked residents to identify issues that could be addressed through education. Parenting was one topic that was named, and in response, MSU Extension and the local Great Start Collaborative, which operates through the Charlevoix-Emmet Intermediate School District are working together to offer classes.
This collaboration of parents, business and community leaders, schools and human service agencies seeks to assure that every Michigan child has a great start, is healthy and ready to succeed in school, with parents who are committed to educational achievement. To improve the heath, development and learning of young children, members of the Great Start Collaborative are charged with creating helpful information, services and resources that parents want and need.
MSU Extension was uniquely positioned to offer “Parent Connection” classes, for families referred by courts and human service agencies and those who requested the assistance. The curriculum selected for this program is a new release and is offered in a community-based parent education format. Topics included child development, communication, praise, discipline, alternatives to spanking and dealing with stress.
The first series of seven classes was offered last fall in Northern Michigan Hospital’s Community Health Education Center. Of the sixteen registrants, five completed the class and received certificates. All participants rated the class as highly informative, and plan to put into practice what they learned. A three-month follow-up survey will be used to gather more data from this group. Of those who didn’t finish, some have asked to attend the next series, citing that their lives are more stable now. The next series recently began with 23 participants.
“The handout on age-appropriate discipline is excellent,” one participating parent said. “I have already used it, and I have shown it to my mother to jog her memory on how to correct two-year-olds. It has helped us both to not expect better behavior than my son can do.”
Contact:
Carolyn Penniman
MSUE Extension Educator
Phone: (231) 439-8973 / Master Gardener Program offers
Education, volunteer opportunities
The MSU Extension Master Gardener Program provides horticulture education and gardening information. The Master Gardener certificate course consists of more than 30 hours of instruction during 111 weeks of classes and field trips. There were 23 participants from three counties in the summer 2007 Master Gardener educational program. The class represented landscape and garden-related professionals as well as enthusiastic gardeners.
Volunteer service is a required component of this program, and may take the shape of horticulture related projects and community activities. Participants can earn credit working in areas of personal interest that benefit the community, such as partnering with public community gardens, organizing educational workshops and conferences, working with youths in the Junior Master Gardener Program and volunteering service to senior centers and other non-profit groups.
“I can’t tell you how much I enjoyed the course and I learned a lot, but was sad to see it end,” one participant said. “It will help me in my job at a local garden center with more knowledge as a Master Gardener.”
Contact:
Martha F. Lee
Master Gardener Coordinator
Phone: (231)) 439-8979
MSU is an affirmative-action, equal-opportunity employer. Michigan State University Extension programs and materials are open to all without regard to race, color, national origin, gender, gender identity, religion, age, height, weight, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, marital status, family status or veteran status. Issued in furtherance of MSU Extension work, acts of May 8 and June 30, 1914, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Thomas G. Coon, Extension Director, Michigan State University, E. Lansing, MI 48824