Keyword/Tag: Southwest Florida

Meet our Southwest Florida Staff

Posted on April 4, 2019 by -

In Southwest Florida, Brighter Bites has a small but productive team of three staff members whose impressive teamwork has helped their program’s schools, students, and parents feel like one big family.

L to R: Program Associate Mariana Coronado, Program Director Marcela Romero, and Program Coordinator Rosmery Garcia

Program Director Marcela Romero has been with the program since its introduction to Southwest Florida. Marcela wore all the program’s hats and performed all necessary tasks while growing Brighter Bites during its first season. Her leadership has been integral to creating an empowering working environment for her two counterparts, who always feel encouraged to contribute their ideas to better the program.  You can learn more about Marcela and her experience with Brighter Bites here.

Program Coordinator Rosmery Garcia joined the Brighter Bites team in September 2018. Rosmery uses her creative strengths to engage our families, teachers, and community in unique and exciting distribution experiences each week. We’re so lucky to have her on our team!

Program Associate Mariana Coronado was introduced to our program as a parent volunteer. She quickly became an integral part of our program by using her great organization and leadership skills during the bagging process. Mariana always goes above and beyond to ensure that produce is counted and bagged correctly. She’s an absolute superstar with our volunteers, whom she guides through baggings each week.

Thank you to our amazing team in Southwest Florida!

Brighter Bites Awarded Grant From The Naples Children and Education Foundation

Posted on April 4, 2019 by -

On Monday, March 18, Brighter Bites Southwest Florida had the pleasure of attending the 2019 Naples Children and Education Foundation Grant Awards Ceremony as one of 43 local nonprofit organizations receiving funding through NCEF this year.

Earlier this month NCEF awarded Brighter Bites grant funding to support school-based programs in the greater Southwest Florida region to increase access to fresh fruits and vegetables for families in underserved communities.

Brighter Bites Southwest Florida Program Director Marcela Romero with Program Coordinator Rosmery Garcia at the awards ceremony held at the Bay Colony Golf Club

Brighter Bites launched our Southwest Florida program in spring of 2018. Since then, we have provided over 100,000 pounds of fresh produce along with nutrition education materials to more than 1,000 families.
We are thrilled to announce this exciting partnership and look forward to working with NCEF in the coming months to bring more fruits and vegetables to families in Collier County!

Partner Highlight: Southern Specialties

Posted on December 18, 2018 by -

Our friends at Southern Specialties,  a South Florida fruit and vegetable grower and shipper, have partnered with Brighter Bites to provide two varieties of produce each week to our Southwest Florida program. We are so excited about this partnership and all the wonderful produce varieties that our families will be introduced to.

“Southern Specialties is very proud of our association with Brighter Bites. Together, we are moving the needle towards greater fruit and vegetable consumption among children and their families,” said Charlie Eagle, vice president of business development for Southern Specialties. “It is gratifying to see the quantifiable results produced by the Brighter Bites program.”

“With consistent support from Southern Specialties each week of our programming in Southwest Florida, we are sure to be giving our families in Immokalee and other parts of Collier County access to two additional unique items of produce each and every week of the program,” said Brighter Bites Executive Director Samuel Newman. “During this season of gratitude, we are thankful for produce houses like Southern Specialties who understand that exposing Brighter Bites families to fresh food is giving them the gift of health.”

Read more about the collaboration between Southern Specialties and Brighter Bites!
– Southern Specialties gives produce to Brighter Bites program
– South Florida grower partners with local nonprofit
– Southern Specialties Partners for Nutrition

Check out some photos of produce that Southwest Specialties donated to Brighter Bites during the Fall 2018 season.

Brighter Bites Featured in Naples Daily News

Posted on August 17, 2018 by -

The Naples Daily News recently featured Brighter Bites in a report on health disparities in Southwest Florida, where Brighter Bites is working to improve access to fresh produce for low income families. Read the article to learn about Southwest Florida’s food desert issue and how Brighter Bites is fighting back by creating communities of health through fresh food.

“AndNowUKnow” Features Brighter Bites Florida Expansion

Posted on May 1, 2018 by -

AndNowUKnow, an online news media company, reported on Brighter Bites’ partnerships with Lipman Family Farms and the Harry Chapin Food Bank upon our expansion to Southwest Florida. Read their coverage below and click here for the full story.

Fri. April 27th, 2018
By Kayla Webb

FORT MYERS, FL – Lipman Family Farms is setting its sights on what it can do to increase exposure to fresh fruits and vegetables for families in underserved communities. Teaming up with Harry Chapin Food Bank and Brighter Bites, a nonprofit organization that helps create communities of health through fresh food, Lipman Family Farms is launching school-based programs to encourage healthy eating by providing fresh produce, nutrition education materials, support of in-class education, and healthy recipes to families in South Florida.

Jaime Weisinger, Director of Community Relations and Government Relations, Lipman Family Farms“Over the past couple of years, Lipman Family Farms has donated tomatoes to Brighter Bites programs in Houston, Dallas, and Austin, and we’ve been proud of our association with the program and its impact on so many lives,” said Jaime Weisinger, Director of Community Relations and Government Relations, Lipman Family Farms. “When there was an opportunity to bring the program to Southwest Florida, we jumped at the chance. Brighter Bites fits every part of our philanthropy strategy, and we’re thrilled to be donating even more produce to Brighter Bites right here in our own backyard.”

According to Feeding America, nearly 40,000 individuals in Collier County, 36 percent of whom are children, lack consistent access to nutritionally adequate food. To remedy that, Brighter Bites is running programs this spring and summer that will provide more than 75,000 pounds of produce and thousands of pieces of nutrition education materials to over 600 families and teachers at Lake Trafford Elementary School, Eden Park Elementary School, and the Boys and Girls Club in the Collier County School District. Lipman Family Farms and Harry Chapin Food Bank are supporting the initiative and doing their part by donating thousands of pounds of fresh fruits and veggies, warehousing, and transportation services.

Samuel Newman, Executive Director, Brighter Bites“Local partnerships are critical to the success of our organization and the impact we have on the communities where we work,” said Samuel Newman, Executive Director of Brighter Bites. “We could not be happier to be partnering with two of the most trusted organizations in the region.”

Within the initiative, a simple formula is used to introduce healthy lifestyles to families that includes produce distribution, nutrition education, and encouraging families to sample delicious and fun recipes. Parents and community volunteers also pack bags of fresh fruits and veggies for families and teachers to take home each week over the course of three eight-week sessions. Each free two-bag set contains approximately 50 servings of 12 different produce items.

Richard LeBer, President and CEO, Harry Chapin Food Bank“Many hungry families struggle to eat healthy food on a budget. Teaching them how to do that is an important priority for us,” said Richard LeBer, President and CEO of Harry Chapin Food Bank. “That’s why we’re very excited to bring Brighter Bites’ effective programs to Southwest Florida.”

According to a press release, research shows the Brighter Bites model provides consistent opportunities for children and their families to practice healthier behaviors in school and at home, with 98 percent of parents reporting their children eating more fruits and vegetables thanks to the Brighter Bites program and 74 percent maintaining that increased level of consumption after the program ends. Children and parents participating in Brighter Bites also reported:

  • Significant increase in the amount of fruits and vegetables consumed
  • Significant increase in serving more fruits and vegetables as snacks
  • Two-fold increase in cooking meals from scratch, and a significant increase in eating meals together and serving more produce as part of those meals
  • Two-fold increase in using nutrition labels to guide grocery purchases
  • A significant decrease in added sugars consumed among children

Since launching in 2012, Brighter Bites has distributed more than 16 million pounds of produce and over 100,000 nutrition education materials to 40,000 familiesthrough elementary schools, preschools, and summer camps. Southwest Florida is the sixth Brighter Bites program to launch after Houston, Dallas, Austin, New York City, and Washington, D.C.

For more news like this, stay tuned to AndNowUKnow.

Partner Spotlight: Harry Chapin Food Bank and Lipman Family Farms

Posted on April 26, 2018 by -

Brighter Bites is so excited about our expansion to Southwest Florida, where we are currently creating communities of health through fresh food in two Collier County elementary schools. But no Brighter Bites community would be complete without our amazing local partners, and we have two of them in Southwest Florida to celebrate today: Lipman Family Farms and Harry Chapin Food Bank!

Lipman Family Farms is America’s largest field tomato grower and a trusted staple in the Southwest Florida community. Lipman Family Farms was founded under a different name in the 1930’s, but its dedication to building lasting relationships with its customers and being responsible for the natural environment and the health of the families it works with has stayed the same. Brighter Bites has been friends with Lipman for years, previously receiving tomatoes for our families in Houston, Dallas, and Austin. We’re so excited to now be working with Lipman in their own backyard!

The Harry Chapin Food Bank‘s mission is to lead its community in the fight to end hunger. With Brighter Bites, it is able to support its priority of emphasizing the importance of healthy choices for the families it serves. The Harry Chapin Food Bank was founded in 1983 and serves five Southwest Florida counties. Every week, the Harry Chapin Food Bank provides food for over 28,000 individuals. We are so excited to be working with such an important organization for Southwest Florida families.

We can’t wait to see what the future holds for Brighter Bites with our new partners. We know that it will certainly be brighter with these folks by our side!

WINK News Covers Brighter Bites’ Launch in Southwest Florida

Posted on April 26, 2018 by -

Brighter Bites’ official launch in Southwest Florida was covered by WINK News, the CBS Naples, FL affiliate station. Read their coverage below.

Brighter Bites provides free and healthy food to Immokalee families

A new partnership is fighting “food deserts” in parts of Southwest Florida that were hit by Hurricane Irma.

“Food deserts are defined as parts of the country vapid of fresh fruit, vegetables, and other healthful whole foods, usually found in impoverished areas,” according to the USDA. “This is largely due to a lack of grocery stores, farmers’ markets, and healthy food providers.”

Immokalee is one area where children don’t always see healthy food on their plates. 99 percent of students in the area qualify for free lunch, according to school officials.

Hurricane Irma ravaged the Immokalee community which was already struggling.

That’s where Brighter Bites comes to the rescue.

“Not only are we getting them food but we’re giving them education and teaching them how to use it,” said Lisa Helfman, founder of Brighter Bites.

Brighter Bites is teaming up with Harry Chapin and Lipman Farms to help families access and learn about free healthy produce.

The free produce saves families about $35 a week.

Sponsors brought the group in from Texas. Helfman says these meals aren’t just a temporary fix. The program is built to form habits and children are eager to get their fruits and veggies each week.

“It’s fun and it’s becoming a part of the fabric of their lives,” said Helfman.”

In fact, 94 percent of families report that they eat all of the produce provided weekly.

The program will expand to more schools and the Boys and Girls Club summer camp.

To register for those camps, you can visit the Boys and Girls Club website.”

Watch WINK’s video coverage here.