What do you do at your site to address the issue of food insecurity?
I help to address the issue of food insecurity each day at the Squirrel Hill Community Food Pantry. The pantry serves nearly 600 households in the Squirrel Hill neighborhood each month by providing them with supplemental or emergency food, as well as social services and support. Specifically, my roles include coordinating volunteers, enrolling new clients, and aiding them in making the best choices for themselves and their families while shopping at the pantry, which is set up like a small grocery store. Another one of my roles is to educate the local community about nutrition, food insecurity, and how to eat healthy on a budget.
What is your New Year's service resolution?
My New Years’ service resolution is to help create effective health education workshops that will serve the Bhutanese refugee population living in Pittsburgh by empowering them to manage their own health, and to adopt healthier eating and exercising habits. I am working with two other AmeriCorps members, in order to develop and implement these workshops, with the goal of lessening the prevalence of diabetes, hypertension, and other chronic diseases that are common within the community.
