River Vale, New Jersey – Spectrum for Living and Veolia are starting 2024 with a newly established partnership. Veolia will support Spectrum’s Green Thumb Program, a dual initiative to develop a client gardening club and healthy cooking program.

“We are pleased to help members of the community in any way we can.  It is a pleasure to make such an impact by providing funding for key programs and projects that are environmentally friendly as well as sustainable” noted Sonja Clark, Manager of Community Relations at Veolia.

Clients will hone their environmental skills through the gardening initiative by learning proper irrigation, planting, composting, and harvesting guidelines. It will be an exercise in sensory development as clients work with their hands, testing soil, pruning unwanted growth, and managing the produce grown. Clients will take on the responsibility of their garden, learning the importance of spatial awareness, organization, and planning to determine gardening zones.

As the produce begins to prosper from the garden, a registered Chef and Dietician will utilize fruits, vegetables, and herbs grown to administer the healthy cooking program. The chef will teach clients the basics of meal preparation to learn to make healthy meals and make informed choices about the food they put in their bodies. The goal is to increase client knowledge about nutrition while offering them practical life skills in food preparation and meal planning. Clients will experience hands-on instruction on how to properly wash, cut, portion, and prepare their food.

“As a multi-tiered approach to client education, health, nutrition, and wellness, Spectrum’s Green Thumb Program aims to build healthy behaviors, teach transferable life skills, and encourage self-sufficiency and independence among our clients” added Christopher Perry, President & CEO of Spectrum for Living. “Overseen by Spectrum for Living’s Recreation Department, Spectrum’s Green Thumb will occur throughout 2024 and provide clients with access to gardening, healthy cooking programs, and activities that will help them gain practical skills and share experiences that build connections with each other and their environment. By pairing these initiatives together, Spectrum for Living intends to offer clients the tools to make healthy choices centered on environmental knowledge and horticultural awareness.”

If you want to support Spectrum for Living’s programs through a monetary or in-kind donation, please contact Elizabeth Boyajian at eboyajian@spectrumforliving.org.