How Much Is A Cup of Fruits & Vegetables?

Here at Moveable Feast, we have wonderful full-time Dietitians overseeing the menu and portions of our client meals. The rest of us, however, still wonder if we are getting it right sometimes. To help us all, here is a great go-to visual aid showing us 1/2 cup and 1 cup serving sizes of fruits and veggies.

How much is a cup? Here are some examples…

This image and more information can be found at: http://www.fruitsandveggiesmorematters.org/?page_id=63  (©2008-2012 Produce for Better Health Foundation. All rights reserved.)

World AIDS Day

Today- Thursday, Dec. 1 - is World AIDS Day. 

It will be a busy day for Moveable Feast. Twenty-seven volunteers from MAC Cosmetics will be here to work in the kitchen, while other staff and volunteers will join in the festivities of BMORE AWARE: The Living Red Ribbon at Coppin State.  

This is the 30^th anniversary of the identification of HIV in the US.

Some of you may recall that early on in this epidemic, HIV was a death sentence for those infected. Having AIDS often meant not only sickness but also isolation and rejection.  Friends were getting sick and dying. Fortunately, friends were also helping each other. In fact, the founder of Moveable Feast, Bob Mehl, an employee of the Baltimore City Health Department, was a staunch advocate for his friends and the community around him whom he saw dying from AIDS. That’s how Moveable Feast got started.  Bob insisted that the City do something to help people living with AIDS.  Bob fought tirelessly to secure funding from Mayor Kurt Schmoke and was asked by Mayor Schmoke to head a group to address this issue.  The core idea of Moveable Feast was born:  provide nutritious meals to people living with HIV/AIDS free-of-charge and, just as importantly, deliver those meals with care and compassion. Unfortunately, Bob himself succumbed to AIDS before Moveable Feast ever served its first meals, but the seeds of compassion were sown for decades to come.

For more than 22 years, Moveable Feast has focused its mission on serving people who have been ostracized from their families, ridiculed by their communities, demoralized by poverty, and feared by the ignorance, prejudice and self-righteousness that often plagues even the most well-intentioned people. Ours has been a mission that nourishes the body, soul and spirit, without regard for color, race, creed, origin or sexual identification. 

Indeed, we are an example of a “feast to which all are welcome.”

World AIDS Day is a day to remember those who have died from AIDS and to remember the nearly 1 million people in the US who live courageously with HIV. We also celebrate those heroes, past and present, who have contributed to the health and wellness of people with HIV. It’s a day to educate and “b’more aware” of our focus to reduce the number of new HIV infections and to ensure treatment for those who are infected. Consequently, it’s also a day to remember that many people with HIV continue to live in some form of isolation:  fearful of the rejection, ridicule and prejudice that surround this disease.

Thank you for the difference you make each day to advance the mission of Moveable Feast. I take tremendous pride in our staff, board, donors and volunteers who demonstrate a deep and genuine concern for the health and welfare of all our clients, but especially in those who live with HIV/AIDS. In whatever capacity you contribute to Moveable Feast, it is only by working together that we impact the health and wellness of those who are sick and poor, thus strengthening our entire community.

Together let us be diligent in our efforts to FEED people, FIGHT disease and FOSTER hope!

Thomas Bonderenko

Executive Director

222 More Meals

Yesterday we posted about the many Thanksgiving treats we’re preparing for our clients this week as well as what we are incredibly thankful for- supporters like YOU. (Read yesterday’s post here.)

Today- with Thanksgiving only a day away - GiveCorps is giving us a chance to fund 777 meals for our neighbors in need AND to give back to those who donate ($10 off at Alonso’s & Loco Hombre!). During our first promotion on GiveCorps, a Baltimore-based website guided by the idea of “Give Local. Get Local.,” we reached our goal of $1,000 in one day. Now, we’re trying to raise just $400 more to provide 222 additional meals.  

How can you help?

1.       Make an online donation to our Moveable Feast project “Providing Hope Through Meals” on GiveCorps.

2.       Mail a check payable to the GiveCorps Foundation with “Moveable Feast” in the memo line to: The GiveCorps Foundation, PO Box 5606 Baltimore, MD 21210.

3.       Mobilize your network by pushing the project to your Facebook and Twitter communities!

As you look forward to feasting with your family this Thanksgiving, help us make sure that others are able to enjoy a healthy holiday meal as well.  

Here's to food, family and good health this holiday season!

Giving Thanks

 

The Moveable Feast family (donors, volunteers, staff, etc.) provides meals for Marylanders in need 365 days a year. But it’s around the holidays that our supporters really go the extra mile in making sure that clients not only have meals but also the sense of a loving community around them.

This year for Thanksgiving, we are so excited for our clients to receive the following:

-          Traditional Thanksgiving Dinners: clients will either receive a turkey box comprised of a 14-15 lb turkey, 10 pounds of potatoes, a can of green beans, cranberry sauce, dinner rolls, stuffing mix and a dessert OR a Thanksgiving dinner freshly prepared here in our kitchen and delivered to their doors ready to eat.

-          Festive Thanksgiving Cupcakes: made and donated by our amazing IIDA and BOMA volunteers (read our last post about their cupcake-making event here)

-          Thanksgiving Cards: created by numerous groups, including the Transitional Head Injury Program, IIDA and BOMA.   

We are honored to be able to make Thanksgiving extra special for our clients, and we simply could not and would not be able to do that without Moveable Feast supporters. You are the ones who have put in the time to bake, to create, to prepare and to deliver. You are the ones who make this organization what it is. At this time of the year- when we think about what we are grateful for- there’s no hesitation for Moveable Feast staff in responding: for supporters like YOU.

Thank you!

Cupcakes, Cards and Holiday Cheer

Yesterday, November 17^th, over 40 amazing IIDA and BOMA volunteers entered the fray at our kitchens again. Every November for the past few years, this enthusiastic crew picks a night to take over Moveable Feast and prepare festive treats for our clients.

This year, they had a large task ahead; decorating and beautifully packaging 1,800 Thanksgiving cupcakes. With only three hours to work (and powered by delicious treats provided by Absolutely Perfect Catering), our dedicated volunteers managed to not only prepare and package hundreds of cupcakes, but they also created charming holiday cards and sorted through items they had collected through a food drive. The donated goods alone are enough to offset our grocery purchasing for the rest of the year! We can’t thank our volunteers enough for helping to make the holidays a little sweeter for our clients.

Take a look at some of the highlights from the event!  

Funding & Service Update

Thank you for your amazing support and encouragement over these past few months! It is with great happiness that we announce that, effective October 15^th, Moveable Feast was able to return our clients to full service.  While the federal financial delays created a lot of initial uncertainty, they also forced us to reevaluate our priorities and services, which have resulted in a few noteworthy changes:

1.       Moveable Feast will make the move that many Association of Nutrition Service Agencies (ANSA) programs have done to reduce grocery foods and provide a more healthy and nutritious balance of prepared foods, groceries and fresh produce. This will result in a 30% increase in our meal production and a decreased distribution of canned goods.

2.       Clients demonstrating the greatest need will receive 18 prepared meals, delivered twice weekly.

3.       Other clients will receive 12 prepared meals per week consisting of lunch and dinner entrees, as well as fresh fruits and vegetables as available.

4.       Children and caregivers will be added back to service on an individual need basis.

 With these adjustments, we believe we can better serve our clients and assure the fulfillment of our mission. Thank you for proving how strong and enthusiastic a support base we really have here at Moveable Feast.

Only together can we FEED people | FIGHT disease | FOSTER hope.