Community Nutrition Intervention Proposal

Megan Gawronski

NFS 316: Lifecycle and Community Nutrition II

Dr. Mary Platek

December 15, 2017

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Table of Contents

Preface…………………………………………………………………………………………….3

Location…………………………………………………………………………………...3

Population, Race…………………………………………………………………………..4

Income, Crime……………………………………………………………………………..5

Community Agencies……………………………………………………………………...6

Intervention Proposal……………………………………………………………………………...7

Goals, Objectives, Methods………………………………………………………….……9

GANNT Chart……………………………………………………………………………11

Evaluation………………………………………………………………………………………..12

Budget…………………………………………………………………………………………....13

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Preface:

Location:

Census Block Group 007101-2

City Buffalo, NY

County Erie County

Zip Code 14201

Land Area 0.06 square miles

Census Block Group 007101-2 is located on the West Side of Buffalo. The block starts on 7th

Street, near Niagara Street, and turns down Maryland Street. From Maryland, it turns down Busti

Avenue and connects at Virginia Street heading towards the 190 Thruway. The group encases

part of the thruway and reconnects with 7th Street by traveling up Hudson Street. A screenshot

image of Block Group 007101-2 can be seen below.

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Population:

Population 1,223

Housing Units 599

Male 628 (51.35%)

Female 595 (48.65%)

Median Age 27 years old

Average Family Size 2.99

Race:

White 326 (30.3%)

Black 415 (38.57%)

Hispanic 648 (60.22%)

Asian 0 (0.0%)

Native American 5 (0.46%)

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Population by Race in US

White Black HispanicAsian Native American

Population by Race in Block Group

White BlackHispanic Native American

Crime:

This image shows crime risk based

on data collected by Buffalo Police

in 2017. Crimes range from theft,

assault, and burglary. Block Group

007101-2 ranges in risk but a large

portion is highlighted in red-

orange, indicating high crime.

Income:

Household Income Block Group 007101-2 US

Median Income $9,988 $53,482

Mean $16,488 $74, 596

Family Income Block Group 007101-2 US

Median Income $20,324 $65,443

Mean Income $20,829 $86,963

Poverty (%) Block Group 007101-2 US

48.86% 11.47%

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Community Agencies:

For this Community Nutrition Intervention, we will be partnering with The Food Bank of

Western New York and the Massachusetts Avenue Project. The Food Bank of WNY, founded in

1979, is an independent, nonprofit organization that aims to collect nutritious food from public

and private sources and efficiently distribute these to the hungry. They serve all parts of Western

New York including Cattaraugus County, Chautauqua County, Erie County and Niagara County.

The Food Bank assists approximately 135,000 people at any given time. Their funding comes

from donations, event fundraisers, food drives and volunteer projects. Multiple Registered

Dietitians are employed through the Food Bank of WNY. They focus on teaching participants of

all ages healthy lifestyle choices through workshops and cooking classes.

The Massachusetts Avenue Project, or MAP, was founded in 1992 by neighborhood

residents on Buffalo’s West Side. Their mission is to “nurture the growth of a diverse and

equitable local food system and promote local economic opportunities, access to affordable,

nutritious food and social change education”. MAP reclaimed vacant space on Massachusetts

Avenue on the West Side and transformed it into a sustainable urban farm. Their one acre farm

consists of greenhouses, animals, aquaponics, composting facilities and plots for growing fruits

and vegetables. They focus on employing disadvantaged youth and teach them four main

strategies: urban farming, food distribution and enterprise development, community education

and training, and advocacy and policy. MAP has helped serve many individuals in need of food

assistance. They are funded by local companies, a few of which include, Community Foundation

for Greater Buffalo, University at Buffalo, Erie County Youth Services, Rich Products, John R.

Oishei Foundation, NYS Department of Agriculture and Markers, The City of Buffalo and many

others.

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Intervention Proposal:

We are…

E ducation

S ustainable Farming

T eamwork and Community…

We are the WEST SIDEFertilize the West Side!

“Fertilize the West Side” is program that combines nutrition education with urban

farming. This program aims to directly help adults living in the West Side of Buffalo to gain a

greater understanding of healthy eating and sustainable farming, by providing participants with

an abundance of fruits and vegetables. This program runs during optimal growing season: June

through October. “Fertilize the West Side” targets any individual that is 18 or older who is living

under the poverty line in the detailed area.

We will be partnering with The Food Bank of WNY who will provide Registered

Dietitians and any printed education material. We will also be partnering with the Massachusetts

Avenue Project, who will provide farming tools and gardening education. With a joint effort

from these two influential programs, we believe successful outcomes will be achieved.

320 Busti Avenue is an empty lot on the corner of Maryland Street and Busti Avenue,

which is our projected location. A greater understanding of nutrition will be beneficial for this

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specific area, as there is a lack of programing and outreach. MAP does a small amount of

nutrition education, but the program is lacking in nutrition outreach, as their program is mainly

farming based. Our program will provide necessary accreditation from a Registered Dietitian

which will set our program apart from what exists. For an area where almost half of its

inhabitants are living in poverty, a program educating on sustainable farming will be valuable, as

gardening for oneself is economically friendly and a useful life skill. Groups who are

impoverished have a greater likelihood of being overweight or obese, which can be attributed to

lack of education and the cost of healthy foods. Thus, this program is necessary.

In addition to poverty, another major issue in this area is crime; crime rates for this area

are higher than average. It has been proved that crime rates decrease with added community

activities. We feel as though “Fertilize the West Side” will aid in this, as it promotes teamwork,

togetherness and community. Financial issues and crime can cause stress on adults and families,

so above we all aim to create a wholesome environment where people can come together and

bond over a love for learning and healthy foods.

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Goals, Objectives, and Method:

Goals for the “Fertilize the West Side” Program:

1. Enhance nutritional knowledge

2. Reduce hunger for those living in poverty

3. Revamp an empty space

4. Promote community togetherness

“Fertilize the West Side” will be a twenty-week program meeting on Monday nights from

6:00-7:30 pm. The first meeting will be on Monday, June 4th, 2018 and the last meeting will take

place on Monday, October 22nd, 2018. There will be enough funding for fifty adults to

participate. These fifty adults will be chosen based on income, referrals, and enthusiasm. We

want to work with adults who want to work with us. These participants will meet at 320 Busti

Avenue every Monday where they will harvest their crops, learn gardening tips, learn about the

nutritional value of the crops they picked and other in-season produce, and take home a bag of

fresh fruits and vegetables. A Registered Dietitian from The Food Bank will be present each

week and have prepared information on foods the participants will be harvesting and taking

home. The Dietitian will prepare printed educational material and simple recipes for the

participant to take home. A MAP educator will be in charge of implementing gardening and

farming education for the participants. Before participants leave each week there will be a group

session discussing how everyone implemented their foods from the previous week and how they

plan to implement this week’s produce.

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The empty lot at 320 Busti Avenue will be donated by The City of Buffalo as they are a

strong supporter of MAP. We have confirmed this with Mayor Byron Brown and he is in full

support of our efforts. With the lot being donated, MAP has agreed to keep up with the

maintenance the lot entails. We will be purchasing a small shed that will store all gardening and

maintenance equipment and plan on having picnic tables outside for the participants to sit at

during weekly meetings.

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GANNT Chart:

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Evaluation:

Goals will be assessed with a pre-and post-test for the participants. The pre-and post-tests

will be simple, based off a general food frequency questionnaire and basic nutrition information

such as food groups, macronutrients and general calorie amounts. The question format will range

from true/false and short response. Reducing hunger will be a hard goal to evaluate in a short

range of time, however, with an increase in education and by taking home weekly bags of fruits

and vegetables we believe our program will aid in reducing hunger. The refurbishment of the

empty lot will be a clear accomplishment brought about by the program. We aim to make the lot

a place where members of the community will feel safe and comfortable. By promoting group

activity and a sense of community, we intend to reduce crime and other illegal activity

throughout the area. We will compare crime rates and data for Census Block Group 007101-2

from 2017 with data from 2018. Overall, the success of the program can be evaluated based off

these tools.

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Budget:

The Fertilize the West Side community intervention program will cost approximately

$10,920 to operate. The initial cost will be higher than normal because this is accounting for

setting up the lot for seasons to come. The shed and picnic tables will be our greatest expense. A

shed will be necessary to store any lot maintenance equipment and farming tools and the picnic

tables will provide our participants a place to sit during classes. These combined will cost around

$5,450. There will be a labor cost associated with these because we will have to pay for delivery

and set-up. Other required material will include dirt, seeds, watering cans and a hose. This will

total approximately $260. MAP volunteers have agreed to landscape the lot and get it ready for

planting, so there is no labor cost associated with that. Once the lot is established, the program

budget will be cut back dramatically, essentially only required to pay the Registered Dietitian

and MAP Educator for their time.

The Registered Dietitian and MAP Educator will be paid at an hourly rate of $30 per

hour. The program meets for 1.5 hours per week, so they will get $45 per class. For the entire

June-October season this will amount to $1,350 each. They will also be paid for the time spent

planning and evaluating. We estimate this cost to be about $1,200 per individual, totaling $2,400.

Any printed educational materials is going to be donated by The Food Bank. However, we will

need to budget for the pre and post-test materials. This will include printing fees and writing

utensils and should amount to approximately $60. Our program will also need to provide

participants with bags to take home their weekly produce, this should cost $50.

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