Spring Has Sprung with LAYC’s Food & Nutrition Program

In the LAYC Teen Center (TC) the smell of freshly baked apple muffins permeated the room, then wound its way up the stairs and through the entire Kaplan building. This was the result of 11 youth participants putting into practice what they had just learned – how an apple gets from orchard to the table (or muffin!).

Meanwhile, two floors up, youth in LAYC’s Young Parents Program were talking about challenges of making and eating hearty breakfasts when cooking time is sparse. After a discussion on nutrition strategies, they cooked and ate a delicious meal together – some with babies in-arm.

Finally, just down the road at the Rita Bright Family & Youth Center, elementary-age youth learned about fruits and vegetables of the rainbow. After lively discussion and colorful drawing, they happily put their talk into action – destemming grapes, slicing oranges, and hulling strawberries to make a rainbow fruit salad packed with vitamins and nutrients from the different colors.

On what could have been a normal Tuesday afternoon, April 4th was a miniature miracle of nutritious education at LAYC.

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New growth in the Food & Nutrition Program is visible outside the building, too! Last week staff and program interns helped plant seeds and starters in our smaller urban garden, which will be used in Teen Center classes. Some starters were planted by students in the TC class, and others were generously donated by the University of the District of Columbia 4-H Program.

While the garden has just been planted, other program areas are in full harvest. In September 2021, the Food & Nutrition program opened the LAYC pantry, an extension of the emergency food distribution LAYC provided during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. The pantry, which provides food for youth and families across the organization, is also growing! Recently, thanks to a grant award from the Capital Area Food Bank, the pantry got its first refrigerator and will soon be offering fresh produce!

As momentum grows in this budding program, ideas continue to germinate. This week youth at Rita Bright Family & Youth Center are holding a seedling sale to share the fruits of their labor this spring. This summer, a collaboration across the Community Wellness Department will provide teens with a six-week community wellness intensive -- including, of course, plenty of cooking, growing food, and nutrition.

Recent support has led to bountiful gains for the Food & Nutrition Program, and further donations, partnerships, and volunteers could  increase our capacity to continue fostering curiosity about food, building cooking skills, and increasing food security among LAYC youth. With support, on the horizon we can envision a greenhouse at the Rita Bright Family & Youth Center, more refrigerators and freezers to increase food security among our clients, and a larger Food & Nutrition team to spread knowledge and resources across the organization.