by Hillary Blunt, VRG Intern

Musical hits of today and yesterday, along with the several tables aiming to give health education about a variety of subjects, ranging from breast cancer to health insurance to vegetarian diets, filled the gymnasium of Carmel Anthony Youth Development Center last Saturday, June 9th. I had the chance to represent The Vegetarian Resource Group at the CARE Community Health and Wellness Fair in Baltimore with longtime VRG volunteer, Dorothy Kenney.

We enjoyed handing out coloring books to shy children, who, adorned in tutus and brightly colorful knee-socks, came out of their shells when given the opportunity to perform a belly dancing routine they had learned that morning. While talking to parents about vegetarianism and incorporating vegetables into children’s diets, we were pleased to hear from a good number of people that they did, in fact, eat vegetarian as much as they could.

One mother expressed to us that she has a lot of trouble getting her daughter to eat any sort of fruits or vegetables. Without much of a delay, Dorothy gave her a good potential solution: smoothies! In prelude to her solution, Dorothy asked this question: “Does your daughter like juice?” Because, perhaps, if the fruits and vegetables are blended together in a yummy looking smoothie, they might be more appealing to the woman’s daughter.

We also handed out a large number of materials to a teacher with Living Classrooms. He had been vegetarian for about ten years, and had just made the transition to eating vegan three months ago. After answering questions about vegetarianism for as long as he had been working with Living Classrooms, the teacher took pamphlets and handouts to distribute to his class and to use as tools for educating about what being vegetarian means, and why some people choose to live that lifestyle.

Living Classrooms, the group that threw this event, is a non-profit educational organization based in Baltimore and D.C., whose mission is to strengthen communities through giving children and young adults hands on education and job training. They strive for, what they call, “learning by doing,” or learning by directly experiencing a subject matter. To learn more about Living Classrooms, visit their website, at www.livingclassrooms.org

To support VRG outreach, please donate at http://www.vrg.org/donate

To volunteer at outreach booths, please contact Mary at [email protected].