Bexar County 4-H’ers learn healthful eating, life skills at food show and challenge

Writer: Paul Schattenberg, 210-859-5752, paschattrenberg@ag.tamu.edu

Contacts: Angie Gutierrez, 210-631-0400, aogutierrez@ag.tamu.edu

Natalie Cervantes, 210-631-0400, nycervantes@ag.tamu.edu

Dr. Melinda Garcia, 210-631-0400, Melinda.garcia@ag.tamu.edu

SAN ANTONIO – Elementary and middle school children from 4-H clubs throughout Bexar County had an opportunity to compete at the recent 2016 Bexar County 4-H Food Show and Food Challenge at St. John Berchmans Catholic School in San Antonio.

In Texas, 4-H clubs are administered by the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service, an educational outreach agency of the Texas A&M University System.

“We had kids from 4-H clubs at public and private schools, as well as home-schooler club members participating,” said Angie Gutierrez, AgriLife Extension family and consumer sciences agent for Bexar County. “In all, we had more than 50 youth participating in teams in the food challenge and 11 individuals participating in the food show.”

The food challenge portion of the event was focused on food safety, food preparation and public speaking.

“Then in the food show portion, participants were judged on prepared dishes, the nutritional value of the dish, their knowledge of nutrition and where the dish fits into the U.S. Department of Agriculture MyPlate food groups,” she said. “They were also judged on what food safety measures they took while preparing the dish and how the dish was presented. And as with the food challenge part, they were judged on their ability to speak.”

Natalie Cervantes, AgriLife Extension agent for 4-H youth development in Bexar County, said  activities help students involved in 4-H “understand the interrelationship of food preparation, science and nutrition.”

“Other objectives of the program include helping youth develop appropriate eating habits, understand leadership and work skills and learn to select and purchase nutritious foods on a budget,” she said.

Dr. Melinda Garcia, AgriLife Extension program specialist and Children, Youth and Families At-Risk program coordinator for Bexar County, said she was grateful to Principal Beverly Abbott of St. John Berchmans for hosting the event.

“It was gracious of her to host this event and make the facilities available to us,” she said. “Principal Abbott is a proponent of teaching youth about nutrition and the importance of developing good eating habits.”

She said St. John Berchmans benefits from a CYFAR grant from the National Institute of Food and Agriculture of the U.S. Department of Agriculture through AgriLife Extension to assist individuals who may be at risk of not developing the skills needed to live productive and positive lives.

“The mission of the CYFAR program is to help improve the lives of young people and their families in low-income, inner-city communities,” Garcia said. “Some of the objectives of the program are to teach youth about nutrition and food preparation, provide them opportunities to learn about science and show them life skills they can apply to higher education or a career. The food show and food challenge have activities and educational components that help us meet those objectives.”

Gutierrez said while the event had many educational benefits, the emphasis was on having fun.

“Many of the kids were scared, especially about speaking in public, but we told them not to worry and just enjoy themselves,” she said. “The kids had fun and still learned a lot about nutrition and food preparation.”

Cervantes said the experience would help youth participants get a full understanding of everything it takes to plan and prepare nutritious meals and snacks.

“For a lot of the kids it’s a real eye-opener,” she said. “They don’t realize how much it takes to think up a menu, identify the ingredients needed, select and buy those ingredients and then prepare and present the dish. It’s a whole practical skill set that many of them have never been exposed to before.”

Winners of the food show and challenge were given award ribbons and others were given participation certificates.

The first place junior team winner of the 4-H Food Challenge was the East Central No. 1 team of Emma Belzung, Klaire Belzung, Brigette Bettice, Alexa Lewis and Reese Royce. The second place junior team was the East Central No. 2 team of Anne Alonso, Dakota Pieniazek, Gracie Polasek, Macey Vasbinder and Tyler Zigmond.

The first place intermediate team winner of the 4-H Food Challenge was the Faith and Fun team of Emily Bergeron, Cadence Hunt, Jeremiah Palacios, Eric Warner and Lana Wilson. Second place went to the S.A. Homeschoolers team of Melina Gilbert, Selah Horton, Ryli Risinger and Noah Rodriguez.

The first place senior team was the S.A. Homeschoolers team of Emmanuel Garduno, Pedro Garduno, Phoebe Gilbert, Avery Rodriguez and Ronald Stiles. Second place went to the Faith and Fun Team of Rebekah Hunt, David Palacios, Micah Palacios, Ian Warner and Owen Wilson.

The individuals, 4-H clubs and categories for the food show winners were: Selah Horton, San Antonio Homeschoolers, junior dairy; Cadence Hunt, Faith and Fun, intermediate protein; Lana Wilson, Faith and Fun, intermediate grains; Jeremiah Palacios, Faith and Fun, intermediate dairy; Darcy Loessberg, Helotes LSP, senior protein; David Palacios, Faith and Fun, senior fruits and vegetables; and Micah Palacios, Faith and Fun, senior dairy.

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