Hunger Task Force Expands Nutrition Education Curriculum for Milwaukee County Seniors

Hunger Task Force recently introduced a robust nutrition education program to educate older adults about healthy eating on a budget. Led by Hunger Task Force’s Community Nutrition Manager Carmen Baldwin, NDTR, the curriculum brings healthy eating on the go through interactive cooking demonstrations at senior centers throughout Milwaukee County.

“Demonstrations outline all the steps needed to make a healthy recipe,” says Carmen. “I think that’s the benefit for seniors – they see how quick and simple it can be to eat healthy and learn what makes an ingredient healthy for them.”

The curriculum is broken down by month to introduce 12 MyPlate topics annually to older adults – identifying whole grains, sodium and heart health, mindful choices, plant-based proteins, lean animal-based proteins, low-fat dairy, boost your vegetables, affordable fruit year-round, snack smart, whole grains at dinner, healthy eating on a budget and mindful eating. Each monthly topic has an accompanying recipe that Carmen teaches local seniors how to make; it features items they can find at a Hunger Task Force network pantry in their community, in a Stockbox or on the Mobile Market.

One of the benefitting senior centers is Clinton Rose Senior Center in Milwaukee, which has been a participant in the program since it kicked off.

“By having Hunger Task Force come and teach these classes, our seniors learn that they can still enjoy delicious food and there are healthy alternatives that taste good,” says Sheila Carter, manager of Clinton Rose Senior Center. “It’s also a blessing to learn how to cook with ingredients that aren’t a part of their daily diet – like dates or squash – so they know how to prepare those foods in a way that tastes good to them when they receive them from Hunger Task Force.”

Carmen recently demonstrated a recipe for a delicious Banana Date Bread. Many seniors served at Clinton Rose Senior Center receive a monthly Stockbox that often contains dried dates. However, they didn’t know how to cook with the dates – a fruit many folks had also never tried. After the cooking demonstration, many reported making healthy recipes for themselves and their families and loved being able to introduce new, nutritious ingredients into their regular diets.

Carmen works with the Hunger Task Force Procurement Manager to learn what will be distributed with Stockboxes and stocked in local pantries. She then creates her recipes to include these ingredients that will be readily available to older adults participating in her instruction.

A year from now, Carmen hopes that lessons learned will reinforce their overall health and wellness.

“When they’re at the doctor’s office and their physician gives them a handout about the benefits of maintaining a healthy diet, my hope is they will remember the lessons I gave and the information I shared will help reinforce positive food choices,” adds Carmen.

Hunger Task Force is committed to not just feeding our community but educating the public about healthy eating on a budget.