For Immediate Release
October 25, 2011
Contact
Beth Krueger Hershel
Regional Marketing Coordinator
802.864.3667 x13
bhershel@goodnewsgarage.org
Burlington, Vt. — Vermont Works for Women (VWW) and Good News Garage (GNG) are partnering to deliver fresh food to Head Start programs in the Burlington area.
“Collaboration is something every nonprofit relies on and our organizations are proving how productive collaboration can be,” states Michael Muzzy, program director of Good News Garage.
The collaboration is actually three sided. Vermont Works for Women operates a culinary training program called FRESH Food that feeds hungry customers, local childcare centers need healthy meals for their children, and Good News Garage runs a transportation program, Ready To Go, that provides rides to work, daycare, and school for low-income families.
“We have our drivers pick up the meals at VWW’s kitchen every morning,” states Muzzy. “The chefs-in-training load up the food and deliver the lunches at five daycare centers and Head Start programs by noon.”
”Each program is doing what they do best while fulfilling a community need,” says Muzzy. “This is a win-win for everyone involved.”
During the school year, FRESH Food prepares an average of 100 meals daily for four Champlain Valley Head Start Daycare Centers in Burlington, two Howard Center groups operated out of the O’Brien Community Center in Winooski, as well as the Teen Center and After School Program run by the City of Winooski. This past summer, FRESH Food operated a second kitchen out of Winooski High School and served 275 meals a day for the City’s Summer Food Program.
One VWW trainee says of her experience: “On top of the job training I had at FRESH Food, I have taken lessons in nutrition and portion sizes from the kitchen and applied them to my meals at home, making them healthier and making them my own.”
About Vermont Works for Women
Vermont Works for Women helps women and girls recognize their potential and explore, pursue and excel in work that leads to economic independence. For more information about VWW, call (802) 655-8900 or visit on-line: www.vtworksforwomen.org.
Good News Garage
Good News Garage, a program of Lutheran Social Services, repairs donated cars and provides them to low-income families who need affordable and reliable transportation. For more information about GNG or to donate a car, call toll-free 877.GIVE.AUTO (448.3288) or visit on-line: www.GoodNewsGarage.org.
