WIC organizing nutrition fair for community
COSHOCTON – WIC is trying something new this August that the whole community is invited to come out and enjoy. Instead of their traditional community baby shower they are having a nutrition fair from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 3 to celebrate breast feeding awareness month and kids eat right month.
“There will be family friendly info and lots of fun activities for kids,” said Cindy Hilbish, RDN, LD from the Coshocton County WIC office.
One activity she and Willa Hamersley, director of the Coshocton County WIC program, are really excited about is the kids’ food activity where they will make a fruit pizza using WIC certified foods.
“We want them to see that healthy foods can be fun and tasty,” Hamersley said. “Also kids are more likely to eat something if they make it. We want to open their eyes to something different.”
Part of Kenilworth Avenue, which runs next to the WIC office on Seventh Street, will be closed for a farmer’s market, where WIC recipients will be able to use their farmer’s market coupons.
“WIC participants will be able to have their cards loaded, get their farmers market coupons (if they haven’t already) and redeem their coupons for lots of health food for kids,” Hamersley said. “Visiting the market also can count as an education day for WIC families.”
A fire truck will be on display outside and AAA will be there to do car seat checks on a first come first serve basis. Coshocton Behavioral Health Choices YALT youth group will be doing face painting and playing games with children, Great Clips will be there doing activities such as hair braiding, a walk-in shot clinic will be set up for children with Medicaid cards and information on a number of parenting topics including breastfeeding, dental care, parenting, nutrition and pregnancy resources can be gathered.
“I think we have 23 different stations or vendors coming,” Hilbish said.
Those who attend the information tables will have the chance to win door prizes that include passes to the fair with rides, movie tickets, aquatic center passes and much more.
“We reached out to a lot of people and got positive responses,” Hilbish said.
Door prize donors include: Allstate Insurance, Coshocton Bowling Center, Coshocton County Fairboard, Help Me Grow, Coshocton/Knox County Jacob Vanaman Agency, Inc., Lake Park Aquatic Center, Medela, Nationwide Insurance, Portraits in Time Photography, LLC, Shelby Theatre and State Farm Insurance.
The nutrition fair will be held at 724 S. Seventh St. and there will be activities inside and outside with REACT helping to direct traffic in the parking lot area. For more information, call WIC at 740-622-2929.
“We serve children five and younger and pregnant and breast feeding moms, but kids of any age can come to the event,” Hilbish said. “We want everyone to know what resources are available in Coshocton and get the message out that parents, grandparents and foster parents don’t’ have to go at it alone. There are resources to help people out.”
She hopes that this can become an annual event.
“We hope to get feedback from the community and find out what they need from us,” Hilbish said.
Category: People & Places
