Trenton
May 3, 2015
This spring, the Joyce Kilmer Middle School, is implementing A Comprehensive Approach to School Wellness. The approach will include environmental changes, such as the creation of a wellness room (complete with equipment), a cafeteria salad bar, expansion of the student garden, nutrition education for every student and physical fitness programming. The initiative is made possible through a generous grant from Novo Nordisk, a global healthcare company with more than 90 years of innovation and leadership in diabetes care. Novo Nordisk, in collaboration with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, saw significant opportunities to bring wellness initiatives to Trenton to target obesity. “The data from our community health improvement plan spoke volumes about the need for a wellness turnaround in the community,” said Marissa Davis, New Jersey Partnership for Healthy Kids-Trenton (NJPHK-T) project manager. “Novo Nordisk was looking for innovative, encompassing environmental changes, programming and education. They were seeking to partner and […]
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May 2, 2015
Volunteers are busy preparing for the official grand opening of the Greenwood Ave. Farmers Market on Monday, June 15. The Greenwood Ave Farmers Market will be operated from the parking lot located at 427 Greenwood Avenue in Trenton and is scheduled to be open every Monday from 2:30 pm – 6:30 pm through October 26. The family-friendly market will showcase Jersey fresh and tropical fruits and vegetables, as well as meat, eggs, bread and bakery items. Vendors include: Isles (Urban Farmers), Norz Hill Farm, Food Bazzarre, Franca’s Bakery and Trenton Meat Farms. Physical activities, nutrition education, health screenings and live music are also planned as part of the weekly events. The market will accept SNAP and WIC vouchers. Opening day highlights include a ribbon-cutting ceremony, as well as taste tests and local entertainment. “We are excited to bring the farmers market to Trenton residents and help make the healthy choice […]
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May 2, 2015
To celebrate New Jersey Walk and Bike to School Month in April — and to keep momentum going through the school year — some Trenton schools are learning about Safe Routes to School and applying that knowledge when they walk and bike to school. Safe Routes to School is an important part of the District Wellness Policy, which encourages students to walk and bike to school where it is safe to do so and commits to working with authorities to identify and improve the areas where it is not safe. Monument Elementary was an early participant in the Safe Routes to School program. This year, several more schools have joined the movement. Jerry Foster, Transportation Safety Educator for Greater Mercer TMA, led assemblies at Christopher Columbus Elementary, Grant Elementary, Paul Robeson Elementary, Joyce Kilmer Middle School and Woodrow Wilson Elementary. At Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Elementary, the assembly was […]
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March 4, 2015
The Trenton Board of Education passed the District Wellness Policy on January 20, 2015. This critical achievement is the culmination of many months of research, hard work and collaboration on the part of the Board of Education, NJPHK-Trenton staff and partners and wellness champions in the Trenton schools. Marissa Davis, NJPHK-Trenton project manager said, “This is a step in the right direction, but by no means is the work over. Awareness, implementation and monitoring are in order to truly bring a culture of health and wellness to Trenton’s students and district staff. I am very excited to have the support of the Trenton Board of Education and that of the Family and Community Engagement department as we move this policy forward.” The wellness policy addresses nutrition and physical activity and applies to all Trenton public schools. The policy provides guidelines governing the nutritional quality of foods and beverages sold and […]
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November 11, 2014
Convincing kids and parents to change not only their eating habits, but also their purchasing behavior can be a challenge — but it’s one that Rutgers Health Communications students took on last fall. Rutgers Assistant Professor of Health Communication, Dr. Jennifer Warren’s undergraduate Health Communication class partnered with the New Jersey Partnership for Healthy Kids-Trenton last fall to create a healthy eating initiative at corner stores and bodegas in Trenton. Student winners for coming up with the most unique initiatives were recently announced by the Partnership. The winning projects included: Buy one healthy food item, get a stamp; after five stamps get one heathy food item free incentive cards (Healthy Corner Store Initiative group) Healthy recipes fridge calendar/aisle cards (Healthy Hero’s group) Healthy pamphlets initiative (Making the Healthy Choice the Easy Choice group) The first two marketing strategies have been implemented by NJPHK-Trenton and the Healthy Corner Store Network. “This […]
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October 1, 2014
What does it take to sustain a healthy lifestyle? That’s the question some Trenton families had the chance to answer this summer through Rx for Health, an initiative that encouraged them to “eat green, get active, and start their family on the road to a healthier life!” Part food fair, part mini-exercise class and garden experience, Rx for Health was created by New Jersey Partnership for Healthy Kids-Trenton (NJPHK-T), America’s Grow-A-Row from Hunterdon County, the Henry J. Austin Health Center (HJAHC), Isles Inc. and Rutgers Cooperative Extension SNAP-ED program. The goal was to provide skills and resources so families could sustain healthy habits. Through the Trenton Green Team, a grant from Sustainable Jersey underwrote the 2014 pilot program. Each Thursday for four weeks in August, children and their families visited HJAHC. Once there, they were greeted by interns dressed like vegetables. They received produce from a local farmers’ market, sampled […]
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September 21, 2014
Focused on youth, healthy living and community development, the Living Hope Empowerment Center (LHEC) is a faith-based community development corporation empowering residents of Trenton towards self-sufficiency and economic independence. Led by executive director Francis Blanco, LHEC has been instrumental in several partnership initiatives, spearheading healthy corner stores and advocating for broader policy and planning approaches to promote healthy communities. Blanco has been the co-chair of the Access to Healthy Foods work group for the past two years and is now the chair of the Trenton Healthy Food Network. ”Francis Blanco is an avid supporter of NJPHK-Trenton and incorporates our goals into the mission of Living Hope Empowerment Center, an organization that is doing some amazing things in the areas of health and wellness,” said Marissa Davis, New Jersey Partnership for Healthy Kids-Trenton (NJPHK-Trenton) project manager. Blanco joined LHEC in 2010 when the organization, founded by Living Hope Church pastors, went […]
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May 5, 2014
On May 5th, Paul Robeson Elementary School in Trenton added gardening to its curriculum when students, faculty, parents and members of the community gathered to open an American Heart Association Teaching Garden on the school grounds. The garden is part of an education initiative to help build healthy bodies and minds. Representatives from the American Heart Association, New Jersey Partnership for Healthy Kids-Trenton (NJPHK-Trenton) and Living Hope Empowerment Center (LHEC) joined in the May 5th Plant Day Celebration. Aimed at first- through fifth-graders, the garden will be a hands-on experience enabling children to learn how to plant seeds, nurture growing plants, harvest produce and ultimately understand the value of good eating habits. Garden-themed lessons will teach students about nutrition, math, science and other subjects all while having fun in the fresh air and working with their hands. The Teaching Garden was created using American Heart Association science and nutrition guidelines, […]
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April 5, 2014
Fresh fruit cups are a best-seller at Andy’s Food Plus at 512 Pennington Avenue in Trenton’s North Ward. The fruit cups debuted in November 2013 when Andres Torres, the store’s proprietor and a member of the New Jersey Partnership for Healthy Kids-Trenton (NJPHK-Trenton) Healthy Corner Store Initiative, began stocking and promoting more healthy food choices. Torres, who grew up in the grocery business and opened his Trenton store seven years ago, likes to eat healthy himself and enjoys making affordable healthy snacks and meals available to his customers. Each morning, he hand-slices enough fresh fruit to fill 50 12-ounce cups. “I try to make something different every day,” Torres explained. “I use mangoes, strawberries, grapes, melons; whatever is fresh and available.” Fruit cups sell for $1.00 and usually are sold out by day’s end. Andy’s Food Plus is one of four stores to sign on with the newly-evolved Trenton Healthy […]
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November 2, 2013
Originally posted in the Times of Trenton There’s a big weight problem facing the city’s children today, but local officials and organizations believe the answer might be just around the corner — literally. Bodegas and corner stores across Trenton’s North Ward officially joined the fight against childhood obesity in the city yesterday, pledging their shelf space to more healthy foods like fruits, salads and yogurts in hopes of delivering better options to the families — and especially the children — who rely on the stores for quick, easy access to food. Organized by the New Jersey Partnership for Healthy Kids, the program, part of the Trenton Healthy Food Network, officially kicked off yesterday in front of Monchy’s Deli on North Clinton Avenue. Already selling a number of healthy products for several weeks now, the store’s owner, Ramon Gomez, can barely keep the nutritious stuff in stock, he said. “The kids […]
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