18. Brella Community Services

Project Description

Note: This project will take place in person

Context/Background

Brella works extensively with the older adult (55+) community living in South Surrey/White Rock. We engage with many clients who are low-income. Another interesting challenge to navigate is how the seniors can access knowledge resources without using digital technology. We're hoping that this project will reach approximately 10-15 seniors in the community to join in a small community workshop to learn about maximizing their budgets and ingredients.

Food Systems Issue(s) Addressed in this Project

Our project is inspired by the experiences of opening up our fridges, seeing all the ingredients, but still wondering "What is there to eat?". And yet so much food waste occurs just from ingredients/groceries going unused or underused. This is even more important for low-income seniors who can struggle to keep a well-balanced diet with their limited food budgets. We want to offer interactive learning on how we can effectively and efficiently meal plan on a budget, while also maximizing nutrition and ingredient use.

We are aiming for no/low waste, to food, nutrition, and budget. This project can also include research and understanding of low-cost food resources in the area, and resources for assisting with meals/budget planning.

Main Project Activities

• Research and create materials/resources to include in the workshop
• Work with Brella staff to develop the workshop budget
• Facilitate a workshop
• Create a handout of resources/materials for participants to take home
• Design posters to promote the workshop
• Create feedback survey for program participants

Main Project Deliverable(s)

• 1 interactive workshop on maximizing cooking on a budget
• 1 poster to advertise the workshop
• 1 handout/brochure for participants to take home
• 1 post-workshop feedback survey

Student Assets and Skills (preferred or required)

• Enjoys working with seniors
• Food Safe certification
• Cooking skills
• Comfortable with public speaking
• Event/workshop planning and facilitation experience

Are there any mandatory attendance dates (e.g. special event)?

• The workshop will be on-site in an afternoon/evening
• Date/time is to be discussed with students at first meeting

Is a criminal record search (CRS) required?

• Yes
• CRS will be initiated at the first community partner meeting

How much self-direction is expected from the students?

• Deciding on the project deliverable(s): Mostly led by community partner, with some student input
• Developing the activity plan and timeline: Mostly led by students, with some community partner input
• Scheduling and initiating the communication plan (e.g. weekly Zoom check-in, biweekly email update, etc.): Equal leadership between students and community partner
• Implementing the activity plan (e.g. surveying stakeholder groups): Mostly led by students, with some community partner input
• Finalizing the deliverable(s): Mostly led by students, with some community partner input

Related Volunteering/Community Service Opportunities for Students

• Volunteering with community luncheon programs
• Connections with Surrey/White Rock Seeds of Change organizations
• Sources Community Service Society volunteer opportunities

Required Reading

Project/Partner Orientation Materials

Students should review the following materials prior to the first partner meeting. Additional orientation materials may be provided at the first partner meeting.

• White Rock Community Health Profile (Provincial Health Services Authority)
• South Surrey Community Profile (City of Surrey Statistics)
• Food Waste Information: https://madeinca.ca/food-waste-canada-statistics/
• The Extraordinary Life of A Strawberry: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uTaFYF1nA4c

Additional Materials

• Sources Food Hub
• Putting your kitchen to work: A resource guide for increasing the use of publicly accessible kitchens through food based programming (2017) (City of Vancouver)
• Kitchen Confidential: How to start a community meals program (Community Food Centres Canada)
• Healthy Eating for Seniors Handbook (Government of British Columbia). English, Chinese, French, and Punjabi versions available
• Healthy Eating for Older Adults (Ottawa Public Health). Includes budgeting tools and resources.