There is always so much going on here that it’s hard to keep up! However, we’re really excited to tell you about two recent events that we’re really excited about.

Easy Being Green

As the nations’ second oldest food bank, Second Harvest has long been focused on putting community surpluses to good use, rather than going to waste. The food bank is proud to now be a certified Monterey Bay Area Green Business.

Going green was an easy choice, not just because our children deserve a healthy environment, but as a nonprofit business, we rely on careful stewardship of resources to maximize the service we can offer our low-income clients. With Second Harvest’s green business certification and new facility, we’re creating a healthy community in more ways than one. Our energy conservation and solar array means we can provide an additional 60,000 meals a month to our neighbors in need.

Second Harvest team proudly displays green certification

Second Harvest Food Bank is proud to be a certified green business and we appreciate the support received along the way from volunteers, donors, staff, Community Foundation Santa Cruz County and the Monterey Bay Area Green Business Program.

Produce Mobile

Watsonville residents saw the debut of a former beverage truck transformed into a hunger fighting produce mobile. The new tractor and rig rolled in to greet participants of the Don Bosco Passion For Produce program. With 16 roll-up bays to show off different fresh fruits and vegetables and overhead awnings, the truck acts as a farmer’s market on wheels. The new vehicle means the driver and site volunteers save time setting up and can assist clients as they gather the food that often acts as a family’s lifeline until the first of the month or until employment returns.

Produce mobile at Don Bosco in Watsonville

On a recent day, over 225 families turned out for the program, where they received nutritious food they might not otherwise afford while learning about how to cook, eat, and live healthier. After hearing a presentation on protein and healthy fats, participants tasted a tangy citrus dressing to go with a crisp spring salad mix. Making their way around the produce mobile, they received bags that included the salad ingredients along with extra helpings of pears, sweet potatoes, pears, citrus, greens, and mushrooms. Residents were also treated to juice courtesy of Martinelli’s and energy saving light bulbs from PG&E.

Sister Silvia Castillo visiting with community members

The new truck saves lots of unloading time and meant that volunteers had more time to offer nutrition tips or recipe suggestions to residents filling their bags. As she shepherded the crowd through the line, the church’s Sister Silvia Castillo told us the new truck, “keeps (the food distribution) very orderly and helps the line move even faster. We pray for those that bring this food, these blessings to us, for which we are so grateful.”

The World’s Biggest Garage Sale, held at Twin Lakes Church in Aptos on May 5th, was a huge success! Now in its second year, the event raised $22,700. Since Second Harvest can purchase three pounds of food for every dollar raised, that’s 68,100 pounds of food! With a few donations still coming in, it looks like they’ll easily reach 70,000 pounds.

World's Biggest Garage Sale at Twin Lakes Church

Thanks to all the Twin Lakes Church volunteers and to everyone in the community that either donated or purchased items—or both! Special thanks to  Gwenda Baker and Laurie Schlaepfer for all of their hard work.

Plantronics employees raised $29,040 for Second Harvest on Wednesday through their participation in The Intelligence Project sponsored by Lincoln, which offered a $40 donation for every employee willing to test drive a new Lincoln.

The car company set up in the parking lot off Encinal Street behind Plantronics’ Santa Cruz headquarters. By the end of the day 242 employees made their way out to take a test drive.

Bly Morales and Lisa Allyn, Second Harvest Food Drives and Events Team

Plantronics and an anonymous donor within the company each pledged a $40 match, which turned Lincoln’s $40 match into $120 for each test drive. Since Second Harvest can provide four meals for every dollar raised, this donation will ultimately provide 116,160 meals to people in need throughout Santa Cruz County.

Thanks to all the employees who participated in the test drive and to Plantronics and the anonymous donor for the generous matches. They made the most out of a great opportunity to help our community and we think that’s really smart!

Second Harvest is joining forces with the National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC) to help Stamp Out Hunger in Santa Cruz County.  Now in its 20^th year, the annual food drive is a nationwide effort that provides assistance to millions of Americans struggling to put food on the table. In 2011, 70.2 million pounds of food were raised!

You can help by leaving a sturdy bag of non-perishable foods next to your mailbox prior to the time of regular mail delivery on Saturday, May 12th. Canned soups and stews, vegetables, protein such as tuna and peanut butter, pasta, beans, rice and cereal are good items to include.

Local letter carriers will collect these food donations as they deliver the mail and econd Harvest will distribute the food through our network of 200 agencies and programs across Santa Cruz County.

“In 2011 our county alone raised over 42,000 pounds of food during Stamp Out Hunger and we’re asking everyone to pitch in to make this year an even greater success,” said Danny Keith, Chief Development & Technology Officer of Second Harvest Food Bank.

Danny Keith visits with letter carriers at the Aptos Post Office

The need for food assistance continues to exist in every community in America. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s annual study measuring food security in the United States, the number of Americans living in food insecure homes reached nearly 49 million in 2011. Perhaps most alarming is the fact that more than 16 million children in America—more than one in five—are faced with the prospect of hunger. Here in Santa Cruz County the number is one in four.

More information

A variety of vegetables can be used, cut into bite sized pieces.

2 bunches beets with green tops

2 cloves garlic, crushed

3 Tbls. red wine vinegar

1/3 cup olive oil

1  tsp. oregano

salt and pepper to taste

1 cup pinto, kidney or white beans

1/4 cup thinly sliced red onion

•  Roast or steam beets. Peel and cut into wedges.

•  Mash garlic and salt into a paste. Transfer to bowl. Add vinegar and stir, add oil, oregano and pepper. Whisk until blended.

•  Add 1 Tbsp. of dressing mixture to beet wedges, toss to coat. Add beans to the beet/oil mixture and stir.

•  Soak onion in cold water for 10 minutes until ready to use.

•  Bring 2 cups water to boil. Wash beet greens, trim stems. Add greens to water, cover and cook until tender, about 5 minutes. Drain well, cut into 1 inch pieces.

•  Drain onion and add to the beans along with the beet greens. Add to wedge-cut beets and toss all.

Makes 4 servings.

One of the nice things about having new people on staff is the creative ideas they bring to our efforts to encourage people to eat healthy. Although nutrition related information doesn’t vary all that much—what’s good for you is good for you—fresh twists on preparing seasonal produce are worth their weight in rutabaga.

We recently spoke to Adriana Sierra who started volunteering at Second Harvest when her daughter, Angelica, had an internship here. She works part time here now and also maintains a business as a personal chef focused on clients with restricted diets or health concerns.

Adriana leads a class for parents at Starlight Elementary School in Watsonville

Adriana explains that she gets people to expand the variety of foods they eat by having them try recipes from different cultures that share a common ingredient with their own. “For example, cumin is a popular seasoning in both Latin and Middle Eastern cuisines. I use that familiar flavor to get people to try different preparations.”

Looking over the produce

“I’m always looking for new ideas and recipes,” Adriana says. “Whenever I travel, I take a cooking class.”

You have to be inventive when your job involves coming into the food bank in the morning, seeing what kind of produce is going to be distributed through our agencies, and figuring out a recipe that’s quick and easy to prepare (that can be presented on-site that same day under a variety of conditions!). Our Nutrition Programs group does that every week.

“I tell people to try a new vegetable every week. Buy a small amount and look for a recipe on the Internet.”

Check out some of the healthy and delicious recipes our Nutrition Educators have been cooking up lately.

Find out more about our Passion For Produce program.

Santa Cruz County Rotary Interact Clubs raised 19,850 pounds of food and funds during their 10+10 food drive at local groceries. That’s up 6,622 pounds from 2011 and well over their stated goal of raising 10,000 pounds in 30 days!

The Interact Club is an affiliate of Rotary International for youths ranging in age from 12 to 18. Rotary is a service club organization with the motto, “Service Above Self.” The volunteers work to combat hunger, provide education, improve health and promote peace.

Rotary Interact members at New Leaf Market in Capitola

The majority of food and funds raised came during the Rotary Interact Store Drive on April 2^nd. Club members collected donations from shoppers at New Leaf Community Markets in Capitola and Santa Cruz, Deluxe Foods in Aptos, and the Mi Pueblo and SaveMart stores in Watsonville.

Thanks to all the club members who worked so hard to exceed their goal, the grocery stores for their support, and all the community members who made a donation.

All food and funds raised go toward Second Harvest’s Food For Children program, which helps local families by providing fresh fruit and vegetables as well as staple foods at more than 50 locations throughout Santa Cruz County.

An enthusiastic group attended the California Association of Food Banks (CAFB) Legislative Day on April 11, 2012 in Sacramento, including several representatives from Second Harvest. All together, there were 48 representatives from 41 California food banks there to advocate for the approval of AB828, AB1560, SB970 and SB1391, and to voice their opposition to Governor Brown’s proposed cuts to the needy.

Lee Hulquist, Prog. Mgr., Food Bank for Monterey County; Teresa Moran, Nutrition Prog. Mgr., SHFB; Assemblymember Bill Monning; Bob Cadwalader, SHFB volunteer; Joel Campos, SHFB Sr. Mgr., Outreach & Educ.

•  AB828 requires California to opt out of the lifetime federal ban from SNAP benefits for persons convicted of a felony involving controlled substances.

•  AB1560 seeks to align Medi-Cal and nutrition assistance by removing the CalFresh gross income test for Medi-Cal recipients and their families, and ensuring that children in those households are certified for free school meals.

•  SB970 allows online health coverage application information to be used for simultaneous CalFresh or CalWORKs applications, and for uninsured CalFresh recipients to be enrolled into health coverage.

•  SB1391 establishes a statewide cost-effective threshold for collecting CalFresh overissuances when overissuance is due to administrative error.

The group received a warm welcome when they visited the offices of State Assemblymembers Bill Monning  and Luis Alejo, and State Senators Sam Blakeslee and Joe Simidian. Bob Cadwalder, a policy and advocate volunteer at Second Harvest, attributes this to the positive relationship the advocacy group has built with these government officials.

Lee Hulquist, Prog. Mgr., Food Bank for Monterey County; Joel Campos, SHFB Sr. Mgr., Outreach & Educ.; Assemblymember Luis Alejo; Teresa Moran, Nutrition Prog. Mgr., SHFB; Bob Cadwalader, SHFB volunteer

“Our enthusiasm is the key,” he says. “CAFB has a reputation among those we visit of supporting bills near and dear to our elected officials and that makes them willing to share their opinions regarding the bills and their hopes and concerns regarding the state budget.”

Bob says that Legislative Day was not only successful in this manner but also in terms of good friends meeting and encouraging one another.

About CAFB

CAFB was founded in 1995 to promote collaboration in response to emerging social, economic and legislative challenges impacting hungry people throughout California.

To accomplish their mission, they focus on providing support to a membership of 41 food banks, increasing the visibility of hunger and its solutions, sharing food resources and influencing public policy. CAFB develops and advocates positions at the federal, state, and local level on behalf of its member agencies and the low-income people they serve.

View more information on the bills supported by CAFB.

Second Harvest’s Volunteer Appreciation Luncheon was held Friday, March 30^th at the Watsonville Elks Club. This annual event gives us a chance to acknowledge the dedication and hard work of our many volunteers and it’s something we look forward to it every year.

Erika Flores, Hotline Outreach Coord., Crystal Moran, volunteer, Teresa Moran, Nutrition Programs Mgr., Rosario Valerio, Nutrition Programs Specialist

After Willy Elliott-McCrea welcomed and thanked the attendees for their invaluable contributions to the community, several staff members from the food bank talked about the accomplishments of the fourteen different groups represented at the event.

Joel Campos, Sr. Mgr. Outreach & Education, Rebecca Henderson, Agency Relations Mgr., Willy Elliott-McCrea, CEO

On average, we have 15-20 volunteers at the food bank every day and many others working out in the community. In a typical year, approximately 55,000 hours volunteer hours are donated to Second Harvest. To date, we have had an incredible 40,000 hours donated.

Volunteers help us do everything from sorting donated food and packing USDA bags, to tabling events and holding food drives. They advocate and teach, manage food distributions, provide administrative assistance, and serve on our board. They are the reason we have been able to grow successful programs such as Passion For Produce and Food For Children.

Last week, a group of volunteers from Target packed 1,800 USDA bags, which equals 18,000 pounds of food!

Volunteers from Target pack USDA bags

Our volunteers enable us to reach and help more people than we could ever do on our own. We are truly thankful for their energy and enthusiasm. They are making their communities stronger and healthier and inspire us every day.

Get involved

More families, more acreage, and more fresh healthy food!

Mesa Verde Gardens is growing by leaps and bounds, empowering low-income residents in Santa Cruz County to grow their own pesticide-free fresh fruits and vegetables in community gardens throughout Watsonville.

Giant carrot!

Founded by Ana Rasmussen, Mesa Verde Gardens helps low-income people improve their health and lower food costs with their own year-round organic edible gardens. Two programs are currently available.

Teamwork

Early Childhood Gardens
The Early Childhood Gardens project gives low-income preschoolers access to fresh, organic produce and the opportunity to learn about plants, life and health in an outdoor organic garden.

Children plant seeds, learn about the garden, watch their crops grow, and harvest and eat the food they’ve grown—making a lasting connection that will have a positive effect on their health and quality of life.

Scott in the classroom with kids

Twice a month, Scott Ferreter, a bilingual garden educator, visits each pre-school to teach the kids about nutrition. His creative hands-on approach, incorporating art, music and puppet shows is perfect for little gardeners. Lately, they’ve been focusing on the healthy aspects of edible plants.

Community Gardens
The Community Gardens project offers low-income families the opportunity to grow their own fruits and vegetables in shared garden space at three locations in Watsonville. There are 90 14’ x 12’ family plots all together. Each family pays $5/month for the use of an individual garden plot.

On a recent weekend, gardeners gathered to get the plots ready for planting.

Anna helps section off planting areas

Mesa Verde Gardens also has a 1/8 acre Sustainable Agriculture Demonstration Garden, adjacent to the Community Garden at All Saints Episcopal Church. In 2011, all produce was donated to the Pajaro Valley Loaves and Fishes food pantry. In 2012, they are growing crops specifically requested by Loaves and Fishes staff for use in their daily lunch program.

Thanks to Sierra Azul Nursery and Gardens for donating space in their greenhouses. They are currently caring for 2,000 tomato plants and 1500 pepper plants started from seed until they can be moved outdoors.

Seedlings

Special thanks to local farmer, Diane Cooley, for donating the use of her tractor and employees’ time to till the fields each Spring and Fall.

Thanks also to the Pajaro Valley Community Trust for their funding.

To everyone who has volunteered time and/or made a donation, thank you.

Help Mesa Verde Gardens continue to grow by volunteering or making a donation.

2 cups butternut squash, peeled & cut into small thin slices

1 Tbls. olive oil

1 medium red onion, chopped

1 garlic clove

1 cup black beans

1 serrano chile, seeded and minced fine

1 cup grated cheese

8 tortillas

•  Heat 1/2 Tbls. olive oil in a saute pan. Add the onions and garlic and cook until onions are soft and starting to brown. Add the squash and 1/4 cup water. Cover and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the beans and chile and cook for 5 minutes uncovered.

•  While the squash is cooking, place equal amounts of cheese on the tortillas. Place on a cookie sheet in oven (on broil). Remove when cheese is melted. Add equal amounts of squash mixture to each, folding tortilla in half and pressing down gently.

•  Serve with salsa.

Makes 4 servings.

“Health Grows Here” was the theme for this year’s National Agriculture Day Spring Luncheon on March 21^st at the Santa Cruz County Fairgrounds. This annual event, organized by the Santa Cruz County Farm Bureau and Agri-Culture, is a celebration of the area’s farming legacy and the abundance of healthy foods grown here on the Central Coast.

Willy Elliott-McCrea, CEO, Second Harvest Food Bank

Guest speaker, Second Harvest CEO, Willy Elliott-McCrea, talked about the importance of teaching people to eat more fruits and vegetables and less processed foods in order to maintain good health.

“The rate of obesity and diabetes has more than tripled for children aged 6-11 in the last 30 years,” he explained. “You can now buy 2000 calories in a 2-liter bottle of soda for 69 cents. In 2011, healthcare costs in America, driven by nutrition-related disease, set a record $2.6Trillion. Everyone is paying the price as these costs continue to skyrocket.”

Willy encouraged everyone in the room to work together to ensure that all children have access to healthy food so they can thrive and become successful contributing members of their communities.

That’s what our Passion For Produce and other nutrition programs are all about. Second Harvest has trained 200 Nutrition Ambassadors to manage nutrition workshops and produce distributions at 20 sites throughout Santa Cruz County. This volunteer program empowers people with the education and tools to help themselves and their communities be healthier.

Two thirds of all the food we distribute, five million pounds a year, is farm-fresh fruits and vegetables from our partners in agriculture. Our strategy for staying healthy is a simple back-to-basics approach based on the following:

1. Drink water and milk, not soda
2. Fill half your plate with fruits & vegetables
3. Eat more lean proteins and whole grains
4. Take a walk every day and save sweets for special occasions