- Author: Sandra Ortega
- Photographer: DeAnna Molinar
- Contributor: Evelyn Morales
Thursday Night's at Plaza Terrace Emergency Housing are Family Nights and the families who reside there love it!
Patricia Williams of Fresno County Dept. of Social Services and volunteers: Michelle Eskew, Fresno County Chief Deputy District Attorney- Sexual Assault & Domestic Violence Unit, Sergeant Nina Jacobs of the Fresno Police Department Family Justice Bureau-Sex Crimes Unit, and Pam LeSage of the City of Fresno have committed their time to provide the families with an opportunity to have fun, get active, and eat a healthy meal together.
A tether ball in the courtyard provides a glimpse of the vision that Patricia Williams has for the complex. Bicycles, balls, and board games for the children and a weight room for the adults are just some examples of what the staff and volunteers at Plaza Terrace are providing for the families to use.
“We want to give these families a different view of the police department and D.A's office. Some crimes go unreported because of people's mistrust of these departments. We are here to help them. We want them to trust us and not be afraid to ask for help, if they ever need it.” – Nina Jacobs
On Thursday nights these volunteers purchase and cook healthy meals, while volunteer Pam LeSage makes desserts with help from the children.
Patricia Williams says, “One thing that I've noticed is that our tenants need help with managing their resources and choosing healthier meal options for their children. It's also important for them to be physically active to help prevent any illnesses that can be caused by obesity.”
Building on the culture of wellness, UC CalFresh educators Evelyn Morales and Sandra Ortega joined in the family nights to teach residents the Plan, Shop, Save, and Cook nutrition education series.
The participants in the class really enjoyed learning how to plan meals, read nutrition food labels, and compare unit prices. They especially enjoyed learning to make and taste testing healthy recipes. They even had Zumba lessons as part of their classes courtesy of Evelyn Morales!
The last day of class was a time for celebration. What better way to end this series than by cooking some of the healthy recipes the participants tasted and enjoyed during UC CalFresh nutrition education classes? The menu on that night was: spinach salad with yogurt dressing, spinach lasagna with meat sauce and corn muffins (made by the children). The meal was a big hit! The Plaza Terrace volunteers did a fantastic job putting it all together.
“I never knew that cooked Spinach tastes so good!” “Can we have more?” were just a few comments made that evening.
This was a great collaboration and a perfect example of the ways partnership in the community can create lifelong change for the residents of Fresno County!