An Interview with Tara Plowman, Program Administrator for The Judy Center at Butterfly Ridge Elementary School
What prompted the Judy Center Early Learning Hub to pursue a different way of offering local fruits and vegetables to the families?
A couple years ago, we began to offer fresh produce to our families after playgroups at no cost to them. We thought this would be beneficial, not only to our families, but also because the produce was locally sourced from farmers in Frederick County. While we enjoyed being able to provide this assistance, we wanted to expand on it and be able to provide our families with enough of a variety of produce that they could potentially create a meal from one “produce drop”. So I reached out to Moon Valley to inquire about the possibility of the Judy Center Early Learning Hub purchasing their CSA boxes for our families.
Can you tell us more about this program?
Sure! Ann Gaydos has truly been an instrumental part of this collaboration. During one of our first conversations, I mentioned to her that, although just providing the CSA boxes to our families was fantastic, it was just a first step for us. I really wanted this to be an informative experience for the families; an experience where they could be encouraged to try new produce items, but not have to take home 5 pounds of it, while also gaining an understanding of the impact that these fresh produce items could have on their bodies and their health. So Ann and I have been loosely referring to this program as Food for Health - the families receive CSA boxes with food that is beneficial for their health!
Recently, Ann was able to put me in touch with a dietician from Frederick County Public Schools’ department of Food & Nutrition Services. She’s been creating a simple, but informative Food for Health packet for me to put inside each CSA box before the families pick them up. The packet has a recipe that prioritizes produce in the box, as well as SNAP-friendly ingredients. It also explains the potential benefits that each produce item could have on the body if you eat it regularly. For example, the packet for the April delivery informed families that Arugula (which they received in the box) contains an antioxidant called glucosinolates which may prevent cancers and improve inflammation. How cool!
What was appealing about working with Moon Valley Farm for this project?
When I first started working with the Judy Center Early Learning Hub at Butterfly Ridge Elementary School almost 4 years ago, a coworker mentioned to me that they’d worked with Moon Valley Farm for a school-based event. They raved about how easy it was to work with MVF and about how kind their person of contact was. She had received a refrigerator magnet that she kept next to her desk and I just happened to look over one day and notice it. I thought, “why not reach out and see what we can do?” So I reached out to Ann and, as they say, the rest is history.
The staff at Moon Valley Farm are incredible! Everyone is so kind, knowledgeable, and accommodating. Ann immediately invited me and my team out for a “field trip” to the farm so that we could see their operations and where a lot of their produce for the CSA boxes comes from. Our collaboration has had such a “family feel” from the first phone call and that camaraderie is unbeatable.
What were some of the challenges involved with this project?
At the Judy Center Early Learning Hub, we don’t see each of our families every day. So trying to find a delivery day that allowed us to reach the majority of our families without asking them to return to the school an extra time or find refrigeration for 25 CSA boxes was a small hitch.
Additionally, I have to give credit to the MVF team because, to my knowledge, opening 25 online accounts where I could go in, view orders, and make changes to each order depending on what our families would prefer doesn’t seem like a small feat and took some online finagling.
What were some of the successes of the program?
Because of this program, our participating families have been able to receive fresh produce from local farmers at no cost to them! Our families get a variety of in-season items to use in meals for the next couple of weeks. Furthermore, it’s opened a door for some of our families to try new things or to share their recipes with other playgroup families. Lastly, our relationship with Moon Valley staff has only improved since our first contact and we truly believe that they’re an invaluable resource to our Judy Center here at Butterfly Ridge.
What's been the best part of the program?
The best part, in our eyes, is that the families are able to receive fresh produce at no cost to them, which will potentially allow them to create meals for their families that are more nutritious. Many of our community members are struggling enough as it is, so being able to alleviate some of their stress is a priority for us.
How have the families and children reacted to the local fruit and vegetable box offerings?
We have heard nothing but positive feedback throughout this process. The families are sharing what they’re making with the produce they receive, not only with us but with other families. Recently, a mother came to me and said, “My daughter said to tell you thank you for the apples because they’re the juiciest apples she’s ever eaten!”
Lentil Stew with Purple Carrots and Blue Potatoes
What is an example of a meal that was made with this seasonal + local produce?
One of our Judy Center parents makes pureed baby food! Another family tried out a new recipe for Italian Pear Cake with pear slices that were recently delivered and then made a lentil stew from purple carrots and blue potatoes from a recent CSA box.
Italian Pear Cake
Is there anything you want to highlight that we haven’t covered yet about this program?
We’d just like to reiterate how incredible it’s been to collaborate with Moon Valley thus far! Throughout this process, everyone has had to create new processes and maintain consistent communication to see how everything’s working - it’s been a lot of work but it has also been fun and easy to work with the staff at Moon Valley!