June 22, 2017
It’s our first Journal Dive, where we jump into published studies on faith & health and fish out the important findings to share with you all! Does your faith help you live healthier? Can your faith help you eat better? Exercise more? Lessen stress? Faithful Families will explore these questions and see what the research is telling us.
June 15, 2017
By Lareissa Stumm
When I think back over the last year and try to pinpoint the most stressful part of my day, it is often DINNERTIME. I commonly hear my young kids ask the question, “Mom? What’s for dinner?” My mood, no matter what it was before this question, immediately plummets to the floor as I look at the time, look in my fridge, gauge my energy level… and then frantically answer, “I don’t know yet…”. If this situation sounds at all familiar to you, then this Faithful Families lesson was written for YOU!
June 8, 2016
Back in early May, Faithful Families attended Resourceful Communities‘ Healthy Eating and Active Living (HEAL) Convening, which brought together folks from all across North Carolina to share resources, build skills, and strengthen HEAL programs. We walked away from the workshop with an amazing list of resources and tools for church communities. Justine Post, Faith & Food Coordinator, described innovative ideas of how churches can make the most of their resources to support policy, structural, and environmental changes (PSE) and healthy living. With her blessing, we would like to share them with you!
June 1, 2017
It’s officially National Fresh Fruit and Vegetables Month! To celebrate, we have been testing different versions of corn salsa in search of that delicious bite of fresh, sweet, and tart. Y’know, the flavors that remind you of summer BBQs and bright, sunny days spent outdoors. This version of Summer Corn Salsa has even more sweetness, with fresh strawberries tossed into the mix to round out the “fruit” in National Fresh Fruit and Vegetables Month. We won’t say it’s the best version there is, but it is pretty darn good!
May 8, 2017
The new Faithful Families Walking Challenge is a great way to encourage everyone in your faith community to increase physical activity by walking more every day. It is meant to be EASY, MOTIVATING, and FUN!
April 14, 2017
A farmers’ market tour is such a great way to introduce folks to a variety of local fruits and vegetables, while also reinforcing messaging about healthy eating!
Have you ever had a bike tire go flat with no quick and easy way to repair it? Wouldn’t it be great to have a bike repair station readily available and accessible in your community? We have a solution. The NC Division of Public Health and NC Cooperative Extension are partnering to provide Bike Fixtations to North Carolina faith communities. Bike Fixtations are outdoor self-service bike repair stations that can be used to inflate tires or repair a flat. This exciting opportunity will help faith communities promote and increase physical activity.
Thank you to those who attended our recent Farmers’ Market Tour training! We will have the video from that webinar available on the website soon.
April 8, 2016
by Hannah Field
Today is National Empanada Day! Empanadas are widely found in Central and South America. They are pockets of dough stuffed with meats, veggies, beans, cheeses, and sometimes eggs and raisins! You can even make dessert empanadas with a variety of fillings. The name comes from the Spanish verb “empanar,” meaning “to wrap or coat in bread.”
I never thought I liked beets as a kid, but when I got a bit older I tried them again and they became a favorite vegetable. Beets do take about an hour to roast, so consider making them on the weekend for meal prep ahead, or on a weeknight you have a bit more time. You could buy them at the farmer’s market or grocery store, roast them, chop them up, and use them in recipes all week long! I absolutely love using one ingredient multiple times, especially when it is something as filling and delicious as beets.
This recipe would make an excellent side to a variety of main dishes. Enjoy!