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Key Fork grant helps tribal program expand 'food as medicine' efforts with local farmers market
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Summary
Program speakers said a Key Fork grant helped launch a community nutrition program that now partners with small Southern Arizona farmers, runs cooking demonstrations led by a registered dietitian, and operates a two-hour Saturday farmers market that organizers say is boosting local connections and nutrition.
Speaker 1, a program representative, said the Key Fork grant "adds it" to local efforts and acknowledged an initially slow start because of paperwork and legal steps, but added, "I feel like it's really heading in a great direction now."
Speaker 2, a program speaker, described the program's one-on-one outreach: "Most rewarding...is to actually visit with the people. Sit down with them and talk to them about their health." She urged residents to consider nutritional changes and home gardening, saying community members "want to, meet the program halfway."
Speaker 3, who described program operations, framed the initiative around "food as medicine" and emphasized cultural foods: "We have partnered with farmers in Southern Arizona that are all local. They're all small farmers. So the food that we provide to our community is harvested at their peak ripeness." She added that the program runs workshops and cooking demonstrations and that "our registered dietitian provides them with a lot of that health information."
Speaker 4 credited local coordination for new community ties and economic benefits, noting the role of "Nadine" in contacting and coordinating local farmers and organizers. Speaker 5 said the market "is only for 2 hours a day...on a Saturday" but that "the community shows up," making it a social gathering as well as a market.
Speakers highlighted community feedback and personal impact: "Seeing the change, seeing people happy, seeing my elders, smile and come up to me saying thank you," Speaker 6 said, adding that the program has aspirations beyond the Pueblo: "I would love to see all communities, all native people communities...eliminate any type of chronic disease, diabetes."
Program presenters described partnerships with small Southern Arizona farmers, cooking education led by a registered dietitian, and a new Saturday farmers market as the principal mechanisms for improving diet and community well-being. No formal votes or motions were recorded in the transcript. The presenters said the program will continue expanding activities in the coming year and solicited ongoing community participation.
