Summer Food and Fun

The "Summer Food and Fun" is a project coordinated by the Community Action Team of the Region Two State Perinatal Association whose purpose is to build community capacity for improving the pregnancy outcome through education and related activities. The project is a community initiative designed to address health and wellness issues while engaging the participants in other meaningful activities. This will be made possible through partnerships with health and human service agencies, social/service clubs, other organizations, and educational institutions throughout Tuscaloosa County. The expected outcome of the initiative is to improve the overall health status of participants with immediate and long term results.

The summer project will be at the McDonald Hughes Community Center beginning June 7, 2011 and running through July 28, 2011 from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon each Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. The McDonald Hughes Center feeding site feeds 500-600 individuals, from ages 1-18, at no charge, Monday through Friday. We anticipate 300-400 participants each day ranging in age from 3-18, along with parents whose meal we will provide with funds collected from donations. Volunteers may have lunch at the site for a nominal fee.

We will engage participants in age appropriate group activities based on the number of volunteers and space available. The goal is to have eight to ten groups with no more than twenty participants and a volunteer ratio of 5:20, depending upon the activity. Daily themes for the three day-a-week events will include:

• Healthy Living and Wellness (includes preconception health, healthy eating habits, preventing heart disease, diabetes, cancer, exercise made fun, meditation, effective parenting, drug/alcohol education, etc.)


• Arts/Crafts/Music/Dance (traditional arts and crafts, creative dance, music appreciation, experimenting with musical instruments, poetry, creative writing, etc.)


• Enrichment (reading circles, targeted tutoring, career clubs, motivational speakers, book distribution, life skills, etc.)

Project Objectives:

1. To provide structured activities at no cost to at risk youth during the summer


2. To engage at risk youth in activities focusing on health and wellness


3. To create opportunities for participants to discover and uncover talents in arts, music, self-expression, and to enhance spoken and written communication skills


4. To evaluate the effectiveness of the project and generate future plans


5. To disseminate findings