Recent News & Updates

News Source: Catholic Philly

Last week we kicked off National Nutrition Month with National School Breakfast Week (March 4th-8th)! This year’s theme was “Start Your Engines with School Breakfast!” Students celebrated by sharing their favorite ways to fuel up with a nourishing NDS breakfast! Pictured above are students from Bishop McDevitt High School enjoying their daily balanced breakfast, which helps them start the day strong and actively learn throughout the day. Senior, Kayla Tillery, shared that when she “doesn’t consume breakfast, she is too distracted to learn.” Blessed Trinity Catholic School also took part in the celebration. School Breakfast and Lunch Manager, Kim Gatto, shared that she “loves serving breakfast to all their students. It gets them off to a fresh start and nutritious day!” Also pictured above are students from Blessed Trinity Catholic School during celebrating National School Breakfast Week. NDS’s school breakfast offers a variety of fruits, whole grains, and low fat milk in 97 schools throughout the region. All breakfasts include a quarter of the daily calories and key growth nutrients recommended for students. One of the favorites among the students during this week was our new Whole Grain Cinnamon Chex cereal with low-fat milk, sliced apples and 100% Fruit Punch juice.

On June 27th, Catholic Northeast Family Service Center hosted the 12th Annual Blessing of the summer, where we were joined by Reverend Monsignor Daniel Sullivan. Monsignor Sullivan blessed special kindness bracelets that were then distributed to the children to symbolize a happy, healthy summer ahead to all of the children receiving summer meals at the sites sponsored by NDS. The Summer Meals Program is federally funded and operated nationally by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). In our area, it is administered by the Pennsylvania Department of Education.  This year the NDS Summer Meals Program runs from June 18 through August 24. This summer, Northeast Philadelphia Family Service Center is one of just over 400 summer meals sites partnering with NDS to provide healthy meals to children.  Participating sites offer children aged 18 years or younger, a box lunch and choice of breakfast or snack.  Most Philadelphia and many suburban neighborhoods qualify for the program. During the blessing, we enjoyed lunch together which featured an Italian whole wheat sub, apple juice, a romaine salad with cherry tomatoes, and whole grain vanilla bear grahams. Special thanks to Northeast Philadelphia Family Service Center for hosting us and for being such a positive, welcoming group! We are lucky to work with organizations like them that make our Summer Meals Program a success.   Here's to a fantastic summer!

News Source: Fox News

Last  week, the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) celebrated its 50th anniversary!  As many organizations recognize this milestone, Nutritional Development Services (NDS) also would like to pause to thank the many wonderful sites and individuals with which we partner on CACFP for the incredible work that they perform to provide nutritious meals to the children in their care. To quote the Food Research and Action Center, “CACFP provides funding for meals and snacks that meet the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s nutritional standards to children in child care centers, home day care, and Head Start programs; youth participating in afterschool programs; and children living in homeless and domestic violence shelters.  The program also provides meals to older adults and adults with disabilities in participating facilities.  CACFP contributes to children’s healthy growth and development, and encourages the development of good nutrition habits early in life.  The program also plays an important role in improving the quality and sustainability of child care programs and making them more affordable for low-income parents.” NDS has been a sponsor of CACFP for more than 30 years and our office is privileged to now collaborate with 275 sites serving three million meals per year.  God has truly Blessed our work! Thank you again to our many partners who work so closely with us to impact thousands of children on a daily basis and to keep our CACFP successful.  We are very excited about the next chapter in the CACFP story!

Every Kid Healthy Week is an annual observance the last full week of April each year. The week was created to celebrate schools’ efforts nationwide in adopting holistic wellness environments. Schools celebrate the important connection between healthy eating habits, physical activity, and learning through games, activities, and educational lessons. This year, Nutritional Development Services partnered with St. Helena Incarnation School and the Philadelphia Flyers Community Relations team to celebrate the event. On Thursday, April 26, third and fourth graders from St. Helena Incarnation School participated in the Flyers Face-Off for Fitness program. Jason Tempesta, Flyers Community Relations Coordinator, stressed the importance of nutrition and physical activity in living a healthy lifestyle. “Mr. Jason” engaged the children about breakfast’s key role in providing an energizing start to the day. He also emphasized the significant difference that healthy snacks can make in our ability to stay focused throughout the day. Jason, Tempesta, Community Relations Coordinator for the Philadelphia Flyers, engages students about healthy eating Following the brief nutrition lesson, students were thrilled to be up and active! Nearly 100 students took on the challenge of sit-ups, push-ups, jump rope, and a relay race. Jason emphasized a key Philadelphia Flyer’s value: the importance of practice and persistence. Fourth grade students warm up before their physical activity challenges   As would occur after a National Hockey League game, three “players” from each group were designated “Star Players of the Game.” Jason chose students based on their exceptional efforts and hard work. One of the Star Players expressed how much fun he had, even though he had never jumped rope before. All the students enjoyed the event and learned how important it is to be physically [...]

News Source: Catholic Philly

New Source: Catholic Philly

News Source: The Leader

The Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program is back for the 2017-18 school year! This program is made possible by a federally-funded grant administered by the Pennsylvania Department of Education. […]