Local Matters
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Jori: My name is Jori Turner, and I am a Food Educator and Community Programs Coordinator with Local Matters.
Jesse: My name is Jesse Hickman and I'm the Growing Matters Manager with Local Matters. Local Matters is a nonprofit in Central Ohio that works to create healthier communities through food education, access, and advocacy.
Jori: Local Matters helps people learn how to find and prepare healthy, affordable food. Whether we're in a classroom of preschoolers at Linden Park ECEC, in the garden with women at Maryhaven, or in the kitchen with doctors and residents, we lead curriculum that is both fun and accessible.
Jesse: Local Matters needs your help to expand our work.
Jori: With your help, we can help even more families in need in our community.
Jesse: On behalf of Local Matters,
Jori: On behalf of Local Matters,
Jesse/Jori: Thank you!
Local Matters
Local Matters was founded ten years ago as a response to a food system that is making people sick and keeping some of our communities hungry. We believe that all people have a right to access healthy, affordable food. Our mission is to create healthy communities through food education, access and advocacy.
Too many people in our community are hungry and sick with diet-related illnesses. At Local Matters, we know education is critical to addressing the dual epidemics of food insecurity and diet-related disease. That's why we provide critical hands-on education to over 18,000 people each year, from preschoolers to seniors.
We give children the opportunity to learn, taste, and talk about foods to develop healthy behaviors. We provide adults with the skills to shop for, plan, and cook healthy meals for their families on a budget. We also bring children and families into the garden to motivate them to grow their own food.
Our team brings joy, inspiration and community building into everything we do. We meet children and families where they are at to create a foundation for health, wellness and food access.
Our country faces a preventable health crisis and people lack sufficient resources for food. We see food insecurity, obesity and diet-related disease all across our community and in our own lives.
Co-founders Noreen Warnock and Michael Jones understood these issues. They shared a love of food and a concern about how our food was being grown, distributed and consumed. They recognized how the food system was having a direct impact on the health of our bodies, our land and our community.
This is why Local Matters is so committed to promoting healthy eating and active living. All of our work is rooted in our core values of education, inspiration, advocacy, collaborative leadership, diversity and inclusion, and celebration.
Our work builds community, inspires, and always includes is guided by our core values, which include inspiration, advocacy, collaborative leadership, diversity and inclusion, and celebration.
All of our work is building a culture of health by increasing consumption of nutritious food, decreasing consumption of unhealthy food, and improving the wellbeing of children and families.
Today, Local Matters is a recognized leader and community partner, increasing critical healthful food education and food access to combat food insecurity and diet-related diseases. We work primarily in low-income communities in partnership with dozens of other organizations.
