By Landon Allison, Contributing Writer
Canticle Farm and the Warming House are providing community members with the resources and skills to make healthy meals for themselves.
On Saturday, Feb. 24 from 2 to 4 p.m., Canticle Farm is presenting a class on how to practice sustainable cooking.
There will be a discussion over how our food affects the health of both the individual person and the planet as a whole.
Kristin DiLorenzo, the education coordinator at Canticle Farm, said the goals of this class is to educate the community and help those who don’t have common access to fresh produce develop the skills to cook with vegetables and healthier food items.
“The mission of Canticle Farm is to nourish mind, body and spirit,” DiLorenzo said. “We’ve been in the process of working with the Warming House, and that’s where we are going to be doing a lot of the cooking classes. We are also going to be in contact with other local pantries.”
Canticle Farm is coordinating with the Warming House, which recently began a healthy eating initiative titled “Nourishing the Community: Educating the Warming House Community and the Importance of Nutrition in Available Food Resources.”
“The focus of the cooking classes will be to introduce folks that are not familiar with how to cook with vegetables how to do [just] that,” said DiLorenzo.
This undertaking was made possible by a grant dedicated to creating this program in order for Canticle Farm to share knowledge about healthy habits with the community.
This initiative is part of an honors project conducted by Alexa Zak, a senior biology major.
“It’s part of a three-part project focusing on hospitality and nutrition to go along with our core values of dignity, nourishment and community,” said Jeffrey Sved, the director of the Franciscan Center for Social Concern, who maintains an advisory role with the Warming House.
The Warming House, being a student-run organization, relies solely on the leadership and availability of students to provide these programs, according to Sved.
There have been many different past programs focused on healthy eating held by the Warming House and there are plans for more in the future, but they all have been and are student led.
“Our goal is not just to fill bellies, but to provide a nourishing meal,” said Sved.
This specfic class will be taking place at the St. Bonaventure Parish, 95 E Main St., Allegany.
This event is being held to benefit community members and is free to attend.
