Providing a full day’s nutrition for KidSafe participants has always been an important part of our mandate. That being said, it’s not always an easy task to get our kids to eat their veggies. That is why KidSafe has gardens at all of our sites. “Teaching children where their food comes from not only promotes food sustainability but also the joy of growing, the science of nature and our environment and the beauty of the ecosystem within which it creates leaves lasting impressions on our kids that will positively influence future decisions and choices they make.” — Kristi Rintoul, Program Coordinator.
All this, and when a child pulls a carrot that they planted out of the soil, rinses it off with a hose and takes a bite they realize just how good vegetables are!
“Ben” (9 years old) participated in one of our after school garden clubs at KidSafe, as well as our break time programming at MacDonald Elementary. He was up for trying almost everything, everything but the zucchini’s he had grown alongside his peers in the garden at MacDonald. One of our wonderful volunteers had an idea; she asked him to pick the zucchini and give it to her, she promised him the following day he would not only eat the zucchini but think it one of his favorite vegetables. He laughed and replied “fat chance!” The next day at KidSafe when the volunteer brought in chocolate cake Ben was one of the first in line to get a piece. It was only after he had finished most of it and chocolate crumbs were all around his mouth was he told that it was chocolate zucchini loaf he had just eaten, made with the zucchini he picked the previous day. Through his full mouth Ben replied “I love zucchini!”
