News
The Wright Center for Community Health, Penn State Extension to launch classes to help families eat healthy on a budget
The Wright Center for Community Health, in partnership with Penn State Extension, will begin offering free classes aimed at helping families and individuals who receive food assistance eat healthier while stretching their food budgets.
The series – which will be taught in English and Spanish – begins at 5 p.m. on Tuesday, May 20, at The Wright Center for Community Health Scranton Auditorium, 501 S. Washington Ave. Classes will continue at the same time and location every Tuesday through June 24.
Melissa Germano
Classes are open to parents or caregivers of children who qualify for free or reduced lunches or WIC, as well as individuals who qualify for SNAP, commonly known as food stamps; food from food pantries; or Pennsylvania farmers market vouchers. For more information or to sign up for classes, contact Melissa Germano, The Wright Center’s director of lifestyle modification and preventive medicine at 570-892-8598 or germanom@thewrightcenter.org.
Instructors from Penn State Extension’s Nutrition Links Program will lead the classes. Topics include healthy recipes, shopping tips, meal planning and preparation, food safety, and nutrition. Everyone completing the course will receive a certification and a set of kitchen tools.
“Food costs are on the rise, which is putting a strain on many families throughout the area,” said Melissa Germano, a registered dietitian and director of lifestyle modification and preventive medicine at The Wright Center. “Partnering with Penn State Extension’s Nutrition Links Program is a perfect opportunity to give families the tools they need to eat healthy and keep their food costs under control.”
Materials used in the classes are funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), through the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services, and the Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program, which is supported by the USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture.
Headquartered in Scranton, The Wright Center’s growing network of community health centers in Lackawanna, Luzerne, Wayne, and Wyoming counties, including a mobile medical and dental unit called Driving Better Health, provides affordable, high-quality, whole-person primary health services to everyone, regardless of their insurance status, ZIP code, or ability to pay. Patients typically have the convenience of going to a single location to access integrated medical, dental, and behavioral health care, as well as community-based addiction treatment and recovery services.
For more information about The Wright Center for Community Health, go to TheWrightCenter.org or call 570-209-0019. To learn more about Penn State Extension’s Nutrition Links Program, visit extension.psu.edu/nutrition-links.
