CalFresh Healthy Living Success Stories and Highlights

Glendale Unified School District (GUSD) held healthy food access events in 2022-2023 school year in partnership with Seeds of Hope. These events provided fresh fruits and vegetables to families and students. GUSD also partnered with Adventist Health Glendale to provide nutrition education and food demonstrations during the healthy food events. Learn more about how GUSD formed community partnerships to support healthy food access events.

The Sustainable Economic Enterprises of Los Angeles (SEE-LA) created a partnership with the Central Avenue Farmers’ Market to provide community-based nutrition education classes at the farmers’ market, alongside nutrition incentive programs to enhance the spending power for CalFresh and Women, Infant, and Children (WIC) recipients. Read more about how SEE-LA is supports nutrition education activities at farmers’ markets.

The Children's Collective Inc. (TCCI) worked with preschool students and staff to adopt and implement programs and activities that increase access to healthy food. In the summer of 2023, TCCI used the curriculum Grow It, Try It, Like It! which focuses on nutrition education through gardening. TCCI was successful in adopting this new curriculum and plan to integrate more gardening activities to help support nutrition education into the teacher's regular classroom activities.

Venice Family Clinic (VFC) partnered with Social Justice Learning Institute (SJLI) to help expand their weekly healthy food events or "Free Food Markets" across multiple sites. With the success of this expansion, VFC obtained additional funding to support pop-up Free Food Markets at Carson High School. Read more about VFC healthy food access events.

The Lawndale Elementary School District CalFresh Healthy Living (LESD CFHL) team has worked with the school’s Nutrition and Wellness Services Department to reduce the intake of sugar-sweetened beverages and increase water consumption among students. The LESD CFHL team liaised with key members of the school community and offered training and feedback on students’ water access and appeal efforts throughout the duration of the campaign. Read more about LESD student's water access and appeal efforts.

Antelope Valley Partners for Health (AVPH), in collaboration with the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health and local partners like the City of Lancaster, successfully implemented the Nutrition Pantry Program (NPP) at Guyman Community Pantry. The pantry achieved Gold Certification from Leah’s Pantry for its client-centered, health-focused food distribution model, which was shaped by community feedback. This success inspired further food pantry initiatives in the area, strengthening local food access and community support. Read more about AVPH's efforts.