WISEWOMAN is a program funded by the Department of Health and Human Services through the CDC- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. With programs throughout the country, the mission of WISEWOMAN is:
“To provide low-income, under- or uninsured 40- to 64-year-old women with the knowledge, skills, and opportunities to improve diet, physical activity, and other lifestyle behaviors to prevent, delay and control cardiovascular and other chronic diseases.” (from their website)
Mary O’Connor first contacted us last January when she had the idea to teach cheesemaking through the WISEWOMAN program in Michigan. She had taken an advanced workshop with Jim Wallace, and, since then, she had been busy teaching her friends to make cheese. When the class became a reality, Mary asked if we could contribute a few Mozzarella kits. We did, and Mary wrote the article below about the event.
Jackie Stapples stretches her mozzarella cheese just before the taste test. |
Thanks to a generous grant from the Michigan Dairy Institute and an in-kind donation from the New England Cheesemaking Supply Company, each woman took home her own mozzarella kit and recipe, along with the memory of a wonderful day spent in the company of kindred souls and a renewed commitment to living healthy. The pilot program was so successful that more classes are being planned, including bread making-cheese plus bread equals homemade pizza! In the words of one of the participants, “I never knew I could do something like this. Now, I can’t wait to show my family!” And that is the power of cheese.
Hackley Community Care Center is a nonprofit organization that provides essential services to Muskegon County families who are in need of medical and dental care. For more information, please visit http://www.hccc-health.org/.
Debbi says
What a wonderful story!
Very cool! Congratulations on a wonderful program.