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Our Initiative

Our Communities for All Ages team:

·    Pinebelt Association for Families (PAFF), 501(c)3, collaborative    
     agent www.paffpetal.org
·    Family Network Partnership, community organization,
     USM School of Social Work, www.usm.edu/social work
·    Nutrition and Food Systems, USM School of Nutrition, www.usm.edu/nfs
·    Office of Community Service Learning, USM, www.usm.edu
·    School of Community Nursing, USM School of Nursing, www.usm.edu/nursing
·    Oseola McCarty Youth Development Center, 501(c)3, neighborhood after-school
·    City of Hattiesburg, Parks and Recreation
·    Deborah Williams, resident, adult
·    Daija Green, resident, youth (age 13)
·    Rose Smith, Resident, President of Robertson Place Neighborhood Assn.
·    George Dixon, youth (age 18)
·    Tunja Nelson, former community resident
·    Clemmie Morgan, Grandparent
·    Pastor Joseph Scott, Pastor, East Jerusalem Church
·    Ricky Cole, Farmer /Lawyer Advocate
·    Corey Proctor, Forest County planner
 
Funder: Foundation for the Mid-South

Starting date: March 2009

Phase of Development: Implementation

Our work:

Our team has been working towards reducing the rates of obesity and diabetes in East Jerusalem through increasing community access to fresh fruits and vegtables,increasing opportunities for physical activity, and building trust, connection and leadership among residents of all ages. 

One of our key strategies has been to organize a regular farmers market in the neighborhood.  Our first market was held on June 5th, 2010 with the support and organizing work of 10 local farmers, residents of a range of ages including teens and older adults and representatives from local organizations.  Our kick off event was highly successful with over 400 people in attendance and since then we have been holding the market weekly with approximately 100 residents of all different ages in attendance each week.   The market has been highly successful and many of the farmers sell completely out of their crops by the end of the market (some farmers have even gone back to their farms during the day and returned with extra produce!)   

In addition to providing the neighborhood with greater access to fresh fruits and vegetables, the markets are also designed to build leadership, participation and civic engagement among residents of different ages who are involved with its organization and management as well as increase intergenerational opportunities through community games and activities. A children's "water jumper", inflated at the market each week offers an opportunity for physical activity and a way to keep cool in the summer heat. A young teen of the Market management team supervises the activity.

 Participation in the farmers market has spurred an interest in cooking with healthy foods especially among particpating youth.  Moving forward we are indentifying possibilities for creating additional opportunities for intergenerational cooking classes and workshops using the kitchen within a local organization on the team.

Increased access to healthy foods has also been addressed through a collaboration with the Farm Bureau, a local farmer/advocate on our team as well as local residents who sucessfully advocated to eliminate sales tax on locally grown food sold at markets. Senior adults 60+ years are also registering for Nutrition Vouchers to be spent at the Market.

As we move forward, we are exploring ways to use the collaboration and leadership on the team to enhance our intergenerational home safety program so that it is more embedded in the community and supported by local organizations and residents.
 
As we develop the Farmers Market and other opportunities, we continue to identify and  connecting with more community resident leaders of different ages and build the leadership capacity of our team to work in partnership and support our efforts to create positive, healthy changes in East Jerusalem.

 



 

 

 

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