Providence St. Mary Medical Center diabetes educator Toma Selfa, RN, writes “A1C” in huge letters on a whiteboard at the front of a classroom. In the next room, volunteers stack boxes of fresh food — meat, produce and dairy — destined for families who will take them home after class.
It’s early evening, and this is the diabetes education class that is part of Fresh Start, a 12-month program through the Blue Mountain Action Council (BMAC) for low-income people at high health risk.
Through Fresh Start, participants attend monthly health education and cooking classes. After class, they receive boxes of fresh, locally sourced food. They also get discounts at local farms to help make healthy eating more accessible and sustainable.
Two Providence St. Mary educators provide the training: Selfa and Cameron VanTassell. They teach two classes, one Spanish and one English. For both educators, the classes are a highlight and they work to make their classes engaging.
“It is good to connect with our community, to get out and provide education they might not receive otherwise,” Selfa said.
“I love doing this,” VanTassell said. “I was the first presenter of the year, and the room was packed.”
Fresh Start was funded by Arcora Foundation. Itzel Cuevas Vasquez, farmworker engagement coordinator at BMAC, said around 60 percent of participants are farm workers.
“We do a lot of outreach in the fields,” Cuevas Vasquez said. “Because the population is mostly Hispanic/Latino, a lot of the education has been portion control, nutrition and diabetes, which is very high in the population. If they don’t have a doctor, they may not be getting this kind of information.
“Having experts come to present is so helpful. It would not have been possible without them.”
