Eat Your Weeds!

— a note from Brett Schilke, executive director at The HEAL Project

“Last week I was at the farm, staring down a patch of weeds larger than my entire garden at home. As I wiped my brow, got down on my knees, and started digging in with my trowel, Fiona stopped me, asking ‘You know those are edible, right?’

Edible weeds!? Nobody ever told me about this.

I soon learned that the weed in question is Purslane - portulaca oleracea, a fast spreading succulent that is often sprayed with chemicals or ripped from the ground and tossed away. It’s actually a highly nutritious green, packed with Vitamin C and E and heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids. The place where it’s growing on The HEAL Farm, where we use organic, biodynamic farming practices, makes it safe to pull up, rinse off, and munch on at will.

So naturally, I brought some home. I sautéed them with a little garlic, ginger, shallot, salt, and pepper, and served them with dinner. The review from my partner was simple: ‘Bring home some more weeds tomorrow, please.’

Purslane has been used for centuries by cultures around the world and is highly regarded as a nutritious and fast-growing food and even celebrated for its healing properties. So why not saute some purslane for dinner one night next week? 

Stop at The HEAL Project Community Farm Day every second Saturday of the month and pull up some of your own to bring home!”

Purslane - portulaca oleracea - is delicious and nutritious

A patch of purslane at the HEAL farm in El Granada

Visiting Cunha Middle School's "Li'l Farm"

"Little Cunha Farm was built with the idea that students could learn outdoors, connect to their local community, and find that altruism in helping others,” Sonia Myers, Earth Science & Agriculture Science Educator

Sonia Myers is an advocate for environmental literacy and sustainable education who says “I believe if we offer the youth the tools to learn about our world, to ask questions and to find solutions, that they will help heal our planet and help to sustain its beauty for many more generations.”  We caught up with Sonia at Cunha Middle School for a visit to the farm with a class of 7th graders.

THP:  Tell us Sonia, what do your students do when they come to the farm?

Sonia Myers: Each student picks a task they want to involve themselves in for the week, with the intention of going out from the classroom to the farm two to three days a week. Tasks include cleaning and taking care of chickens, transplanting, pruning, harvesting in the garden beds, sowing seeds and readying soil in the greenhouse, watering, laying wood chips, making signs, building garden beds, cleaning up and maintenance of the farm. 

THP: Cabrillo Unified School District (CUSD) is committed to sustainability through solar, landscaping, tri-bin recycling. What part does the Little Farm play in that?

Sonia: The Little Cunha Farm came about because I believed there was a need for a garden at the middle school. Growing up in a farming community it seemed appropriate that this be offered. I saw The HEAL Project being done at Hatch, and of course there is the long-standing Agricultural Science program at Half Moon Bay High School, but there was nothing at Cunha to bridge that gap and keep the continuity. The idea for a garden then grew into a "little farm” because the students were so interested. They enjoyed being outside and they believed it could be bigger!

While we have those environmental features that align with the district's commitment to sustainability, such as the rainwater catchment system, native and pollinating plants, biodiversity and learning about regenerative agricultural practices, our program is truly based on selflessness, hard work, and community service. 

THP:  Kids in The HEAL Project love to cook and make healthy snacks. How is it for Cunha students with farm produce and flowers ? 

Sonia: One of the highlights of the classes is being in the kitchen. Students love to don the apron and work with others to make food! We make simple recipes like kale chips, then we make more elaborate pasta dishes, pizzas, salsa, quesadillas, pumpkin bread, rosemary shortbread, pancakes, frittatas. We have used our eggs to make cookies for fundraisers to help continue to fund our program. 

THP: Sonia, you're making us hungry! In terms of programs for students, what's next when a student moves from Cunha Middle School to Half Moon Bay High School?

Sonia: One of my favorite parts of building this program at Cunha Middle School is our collaboration with the Ag teachers at the high school. Hana Lani Hanson and Gayle Smith, and our Career & Technical Education (CTE) coordinator Lisa Longaker have a solid program at the high school. There is a bigger involvement among the students with Future Farmers of America (FFA) and their supervised agricultural experience (SAE) projects. Lisa has been instrumental in getting our program off the ground, and I am so thankful for all she has done. My only hope on the Little Cunha Farm is that students find that little bit of inspiration from growing food and raising chickens that they want to continue learning at the high school and get involved in their community. 
THP: Thank you, Sonia!

Vote for The HEAL Project!

The HEAL Project is on the ballot for Envirotokens!

Vote for The HEAL Project! New Leaf Community Markets’ Envirotokens program rewards customers who make the sustainable choice to reuse bags and keep single-use items out of local landfills.

When you shop at New Leaf Community Markets in Half Moon Bay and bring your own reusable bags, they give you a 10¢ Envirotoken per bag. You can then pay it forward to one of six local nonprofits they have hand-selected.

Every month, New Leaf tallies up Envirotokens, converts them into dollar amounts and sends a check to each organization. This is a GREAT way to support The HEAL Project and promote sustainability. Thank you for your vote: we’ll use these funds to teach kids where their food comes from and why it matters.

Youth Leader Inspires Environmental Stewardship

Sophia Qin met The HEAL Project while in high school when she founded her own environmental nonprofit organization (Light Earth’s Destiny) and published her book “Becoming Earth 2.0: A Glimpse at Earth…and Us in 2100” Her focus on environmental education brought her to the San Mateo County School Farm to meet HEAL Project summer camp students and talk to them about the environment.

Sophia, it's so good to to talk with you about our favorite topics of youth leadership, outdoor education and sustainability. Would you describe your connection to The HEAL Project?

The HEAL Project’s mission deeply resonated with my own mission, and I was especially drawn to The HEAL Project’s outdoor education program, which nurtures kids into responsible Earth stewards. I saw a perfect opportunity for collaboration, so I reached out to offer hosting a workshop where I could share my book with the campers. As a youth myself, I hope I can inspire more people my age to get involved by sharing my journey in environmental activism.

Would you like to tell our readers about your visit to our farm? You read to our farm camp students from your book "Becoming Earth 2.0"

I really enjoyed my visit to The HEAL Project! It was empowering to see so many students, across all ages, actively engaging with topics on conservation and sustainability. My visit included an interactive lesson followed by a reading session. I prompted many questions to these campers, such as what is plastic pollution? or, what causes global greenhouse gas emissions? and was surprised to receive so many eager responses! I felt proud that more youth are reflecting on how their actions impact the environment. This motivated me to continue boosting environmental literacy. I passed out copies of my book to campers who participated. Afterwards, Donya [Programs Manager at The HEAL Project] sent me pictures of them holding my book with excitement—definitely the highlight of my day.

Since we last met, how have your projects evolved? What new things are you working on now?

One of my most important passion projects in high school was hosting the environmental education workshops I did with The HEAL Project. Through this project, I reached more than 1,500 students and 80 educators, and many reached out afterwards with positive feedback! Now I am guiding two high schoolers from my nonprofit organization to continue this initiative; one is sharing her documentary on the sustainable energy transition, and another is discussing his conservation project in Costa Rica. Another group of students from my nonprofit organization is designing an app (Showr Smartr) that encourages users to reduce shower times and tracks their water usage.

Sophia, you're now a freshman at Stanford and running a nonprofit organization to help youth learn and leverage their skills. You’ve been involved with environmental stewardship since middle school and high school. What makes you excited for a hopeful and optimistic future? 

I think when many discuss topics about climate change or environmental issues, they feel a sense of despair. However, I think fear leads to inaction and inhibits necessary change, which is why I want to encourage practical optimism. This was the core message of my book, to educate readers about environmental issues, and introduce them to promising green technology we can harness to address these challenges. I gave a TEDx talk featuring some of these green technologies more in depth, such as lab-grown meat and nuclear fusion. As someone seeking to be at the forefront of building a more sustainable future, I not only want to be informed about the issues, but also the many, many opportunities to be part of the solution. Everyone, from scientists to economists and policymakers to academics, has a role in our sustainable future, and this is what excites me most. I see the potential in every student to become one of these change makers, and that is why I am so passionate about environmental education. 

What is your favorite thing to eat right now?
One of my favorite snacks is apples with almond butter!

The Colors of Food

Winter Vegetables Come in All Colors

By Summer Williams

At The HEAL Project students learn how important it is to eat a wide variety of colorful produce – they learn to “eat the rainbow.” Focusing on a wide range of colors will increase your intake of various nutrients and benefit your health.

The eye-catching colors of the fruits and vegetables we eat are important to our diet. Colors come from phytochemicals in plants that work together with vitamins, minerals, and fiber for numerous health benefits. The most vibrantly colored fruits and vegetables are the richest in vitamins, minerals, fiber, and antioxidants.

Red

Red fruits and vegetables such as raspberries, radishes, red bell peppers, red onions, and cranberries are packed with vitamins C & A, potassium, and antioxidants. They are high in lycopene, which can lower your risk of cancer as well as heart and lung disease.

Yellow & Orange

Yellow and orange fruits and vegetables abound during the fall and winter months— apples, bananas, carrots, persimmons, winter squash, pineapple, sweet potatoes, yellow peppers, tangerines, mango, and pumpkin.

The yellow and orange colors in produce are created by carotenoids and contain vitamin C, vitamin A, and potassium— nutrients that help  reduce the risk of heart disease, cancer and vision problems, and boost the immune system. Beta-carotene is a carotenoid that your body uses to produce vitamin A, so it’s important to have in your diet. 

White & Brown

The health benefits from white vegetables come from anthoxanthins, with its antioxidant properties. Other white foods like garlic contain allicin, which can help lower the risk of high blood pressure, high cholesterol, cancer, and heart disease. Many white fruits and vegetables are very good sources of potassium, vitamin C, folate, niacin, and riboflavin. Mushrooms, onions, cauliflower, garlic, leeks, parsnips, and daikon radishes are some of the white and brown vegetables that can be found in the fall and winter months. They are delicious and nutritious.

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Summer Williams holds a Bachelor of Science in nutrition and dietetics from San Francisco State University. A certified personal trainer and certified health coach, Summer is an intern at The HEAL Project this year.

The HEAL Project & the California Drought

The drought is very serious in California, and we were lucky to catch up with our farmer Fiona Benjamin to find out about water conservation at the San Mateo County School Farm.

Fiona has a degree in Sustainable Agriculture from UC Davis, and is a native of the Coastside.

THP: What are we doing to manage our water resources during the hot dry summer?

Fiona B.: I decided to cut out growing corn this year- it's a thirsty crop and I wanted to be forward thinking about our water needs in the late summer.

THP: We see that inland temperatures are so much hotter than on the coastside.

Is our local zone more “water-friendly?” How does the San Mateo County School Farm benefit from the unique coastal climate? 

FB: This is a much more gentle climate on the farmers and plants than warmer inland areas.  It's not much, but the plants can even water themselves from marine-layer drip. 

Fog gathers on the leaves and drips down the stems.  But mostly, because it's less hot the plants transpire less water, and less evaporates from the soil, reducing our needs overall.  


THP: What kinds of things does a farmer do to conserve water, in terms of planting, irrigating, harvesting?

FB: Drip irrigation, watering more deeply less often, and mulching all help reduce water usage.  

THP: What types of food crops and flowers are best suited to the new normal of less rain?

FB: Lots of crops can be watered only once per week or even "dry farmed."  The latter means to water a plant until it's established and then let it fend for itself by foraging deep in the soil profile for water. 

We dry farm grain, beans, and tomatoes here.  

THP: We love dry-farmed tomatoes — they are so tasty! What time of year is the most “thirsty” for the farm?

FB: Late summer. We use surface water that is replenished by winter rains, so by the end of the summer we are at the lowest amount. It can be hard to estimate how long water supplies will last.

Leading Ladies of the Coast

Young Leaders Step Up

The Next Generation of Women Take Charge on the Coastside

By August Howell / Photos by Adam Pardee - HMB Review - Coastside Magazine May-June 2022

We’re proud to see two of our brightest stars featured on the cover of Coastside Magazine. Fiona Benjamin and Donya Foley both joined The HEAL Project as field trip educators in 2018 and 2019, soon after they graduated from UC Davis. They’ve since been promoted, Benjamin to farm manager and Foley to programs manager. Together, the two have been critical to The HEAL Project’s growth ever since, said executive director Amy Bono. 

Intensive Gardening Program

At The HEAL Project (THP) we were thankful to resume our Intensive Garden Program (IGP) lessons in person for third graders after a year of remote garden learning.  What’s more, THP offered IGP at all four elementary schools in the Cabrillo Unified School District for the first time in our history! Enjoy the overview and images below of Hatch students and their IGP Educator, Emily Cheng, as they enjoyed 13 activity-filled weeks together in IGP. 

Week 1 - Tacos de Papas 

Our Fall season of the Intensive Garden Program began with 3rd graders in the last week of August. The students had a blast exploring the garden, harvesting fruit and vegetables, and making their own food. In the first week, students discussed the anatomy of a potato (it's a stem, not a root!), planted their own potatoes, and made tacos de papas. 

Week 2 - Insect Mouthparts 

The second week, students learned about beneficial insects and made a strawberry ladybug. We learned about insect mouth parts: we used party-blowers to act out how butterflies use their proboscis to suck nectar from flowers, straws to mimic mosquitos, sponges to soak up liquid like flies, and our own tongues to lap up food like bees.

Week 3 - Food Chain 

The third week, students learned about food chains, began garden chores, and had a chamomile tea party.

Week 4 - Companion Planting 

Students learned about companion planting — how plants help one another grow and thrive — and made garden-fresh salsa with Hatch Elementary-grown tomatoes.

Week 5 - Planting Seeds

This week students learned how to properly plant seeds in the garden.  They were so eager to see the seeds sprout!  Students taste tested three radishes:  red, daikon, and wild.  We voted with sticky notes to see which type we liked best. 

Week 6 - Plant Parts Tacos

This week, we prepared for our Field Trip to Giusti Farms by talking about the lifecycle of a pumpkin plant and discussing which parts of plants we eat. We put this information to use when we created plant parts tacos from our own Hatch garden!

Week 7 - Compost & Field Trip 

This week, students learned about composting and the decomposing power of the FBI: fungus, bacteria, and invertebrates. For our tasting, students tried the humongous chilacayote squashes that have been growing in our garden. Students enjoyed a Field Trip to Giusti Farms, long-time supporters of The HEAL Project.  It was fun seeing enthusiastic students and lots of parents participate in the fun. 

Thank you to the Giusti’s for hosting us!

Week 8 - Fall Planting & Soil Prep

This week, students tilled the soil, added compost to the garden beds, planted seeds and seedlings. We planted carrots, radishes, broccoli, cauliflower, fava beans, dragon tongue beans, and rainbow chard. Students learned how to use Square Foot Planting Guidelines to help them know how much room a plant needs in order to grow. For our tasting, students sampled strawberry and redcurrant jam. We talked about how jam is a way we can preserve fruit for later usage.

Week 9 - Lunch Bag Ecology & Saving

This week, students saved seeds and learned how the seed is produced in the plant. We discussed where their food comes from with a fun "lunch bag ecology" exercise. We also got to make a fun and healthy snack from our garden harvest: veggie omelets.

Week 10 - The Great & Powerful Worm 

This week, students learned about the great and powerful worm! We discussed the worm anatomy, lifecycle, and burrows. We identified a ton of egg sacs in our worm composting bin, then named and measured some of the worms we found (the longest was 7 inches!). We harvested Brussel sprouts and purple potatoes. And for our tasting, we sampled fuyu persimmons - a yummy fall treat! 

Week 11 - Let’s Talk about Bees 

This week, we learned all about bees - how they turn nectar into honey, how they communicate with each other using the waggle dance, and their role as pollinators. Students did a honey tasting, comparing raw, local honey to store-bought honey. The winner by a landslide was the local honey from The HEAL Project Farm’s bees!

Week 12 - Slow Go Woah Foods 

This week, students learned the value of eating a diverse rainbow of colors of fruits and vegetables. They learned which are the best foods to eat for different parts of their body and created posters to “advertise” healthy foods.

Week 13 - Graduation!
Classmates wrapped things up by sharing the importance of eating a variety of healthy foods and reflected on their time spent in the garden. THP gave an assessment to understand how students’ learning progressed in the 13 weeks spent together. Finally, students celebrated their time in IGP over a bowl of student-made vegetable soup.

We have begun Spring 2022 IGP at all four schools with 2nd graders, and we look forward to Garden Club with 4th and 5th grade students!

DIY Food Facials for you & loved ones this Holiday Season!

                         Food Facials by Ashley Sandhu

The HEAL Project grows healthy kids from the ground up, by teaching them where their food comes from; The connection between where our food is sourced and how our food plays a huge role in our health. Our bodies use this food, as an energy source to fuel our bodies. The saying is true, “We Are What We Eat” but why is that? This is because our body is made up of trillions of cells, we are cells! These cells utilize energy, in the form of food to perform their daily functions. Our bodies work like a car, if you put bad fuel in your car, it will not perform well and may even break-down; The same can be said about our bodies.

Now, how is this even related to a food facial!? Did I just go on a rampage and now you’re tempted to close the window on your screen? No, don’t do that! The skin is our bodies largest organ, comprised of cells. As discussed, cells utilize energy, in the form of food to carry out daily functions. Saying that, we shouldn’t be putting just any skincare products on our face. That is where The HEAL Project comes in, to show you that the food products can also be used on the outside for healthy skin.

Food Facial # 1 - Coffee Exfoliator

In order to have the healthiest appearing skin, you need to exfoliate. Why? Because we have dead skin cells on the surface of our skin. This build-up can stop the ingredients from penetration the other layers of our skin, thus we will see no results.

Ingredients:

·    1 tbsp spent coffee grounds from your morning brew

·      1 tsp honey

·      Bowl of hot water that is still steaming

Instructions: In a small bowl, combine the coffee grounds and honey. Apply to face, neck, and chest. Place your face and neck above the steaming water, no closer than 9 inches, to open pores for approximately 3-5 minutes. Gently scrub the coffee mask into your skin, to remove dead skin cells. Wash off with a warm rag. 

Tips:   Use the old coffee grounds from the filter. Can you say, upcycling?

Be very careful with steam! Steam can cause severe burns.

Food Facial # 2 - Brightening Mask

 This mask is one of our favorites! A great pick-me-up when you need something to brighten up your day.

 Ingredients:

·      1 tsp lemon juice

·      4 spinach leaves, pureed

·      1 egg white, to tighten the skin

·      ½ tsp turmeric powder

 Instructions: In a small bowl, combine spinach, egg white, lemon juice and turmeric powder; Mix until thoroughly combined. Apply to face, neck, and chest. Leave on for 15-20 minutes!

Optional Tip : Sit with face above steam while this mask is on your face as above!

Use egg yolk to enrich a scramble.

Food Facial # 3 - Hydrating Mask

This mask is great for individuals with dry skin!

Ingredients:

·      2 Tbsp aloe vera gel, scrapped from leaf

·      1 tsp rose essential oil

Instructions: In a small bowl, combine aloe vera gel and rose essential oil; Mix until thoroughly until combined. Apply to face, neck, and chest. Leave on for 15-20 minutes!

 

Food Facial # 4 - Manuka Honey Spot Treatment

 Dark spot? No problem! Apply this at night and don’t take it off until the morning.

Ingredients:

·      1 Tbsp manuka honey

Directions: Apply manuka honey to dark spots. Leave on throughout the night and wash off with warm water in the morning.

 The HEAL Project hopes you love these Food Facials as much as we do! If you are plan on creating all facials, please follow them in order for best results!

 

Intern Spotlight - Meet Ashley Sandhu

Meet Ashley Sandhu, San Francisco State University Graduate interning with THP!

Adrianna - “Tell us a bit about yourself! Education, employment, hobbies!”

Ashley - “Hi everyone! My name is Ashley Sandhu and I graduated from San Francisco State University with a B.S. in Dietetics. After graduating, I was accepted into SFSU Dietetic Internship program, to pursue my goal of becoming a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist. Along with assisting with amazing projects at The HEAL Project, I am also a Dietary Aide at Alameda Hospital and work on a sparkling water and hand sanitizer start-up. When I am not working, I enjoy hanging out with my family and friends, hiking, and reading a good book.”

Adrianna - “How did you become involved with matters of environmental stewardship? What sparked your environmental passion?”

Ashley - “ I have always had a desire to protect our home, the earth. One way I have done this is by reducing my usage of one-use items, such as plastic bags, straws, cups, etc. I have also made it a mission, in my start-ups, to use 100% recyclable materials. Learning about the devastating effects of global warming, was one entity that sparked my environmental passion; I want to do everything in my power to reduce the effects of global warming and protect our earth.”

Adrianna - “ How did you hear about The HEAL Project?”

Ashley - “ I heard about The HEAL Project through my Director at San Francisco State University. As a Dietetic Intern, we must complete a Community, Foodservice, and a Clinical rotation. My director told me about an amazing, community rotation opportunity with the The HEAL project and I immediately jumped on it!”

Adrianna - “ What will you be working on during your time with The HEAL Project?”

Ashley -  “During my time with The HEAL Project, I will be creating and teaching nutrition curriculum at the Harvest Camp. I will also be assisting with field trips at the farm and miscellaneous projects. I am happy to help wherever I can!”

Adrianna - “ What do you hope to take away from this experience? Will you be able to implement things learned with THP into roles you currently have?

Ashley - “I hope to take-away more experience creating nutrition curriculum and teaching children the importance of nutrition. I would also love to learn more about agriculture, since this is something I am very interested in, but have not had the opportunity to learn more about, until now. I have never taught nutrition education, in person, to young children. As a result, I will be able to implement things I have learn from this experience in both my future career and upcoming rotations.”

We have loved having Ashley on board over this last month!

Check out Ashley’s startup, SKN H20, in which she created a sparkling water infused with resveratrol. SKN H2O uses a 100% recyclable aluminum can for their water, and has also created a hand sanitizer that comes in a glass bottle with a bamboo lid.
Keep up the great work, Ashley!

Okta & The Heal Project, Give to Get event at The Ritz!

The HEAL Project greatly enjoyed partnering with Okta, a tech company managed in San Francisco, during an event recently held at the Ritz Carlton in HMB!  Okta works to secure connection between people and technology, through giving their partners secure access to tools needed for their work. THP was coupled with Okta thanks to Give to Get, a foundation that looks to associate corporate leaders with social causes.  

Through this partnership, THP and Okta were able to host an interactive, in person event. During this time, team building was emphasized through multiple collaborative projects. Volunteers of Okta assembled & decorated with colorful images various Bee boxes. These boxes will be set up at each of our school gardens to be used as educational tools. These turned out lovely and we are so eager for students to see them!

Otka additionally put together Halloween goodie bags for some of our local garden students, consisting of shovels, seeds, and gloves. We hope IGP participants appreciate this Halloween trick-or-treat that contains less sugar than usual!

Lastly, Okta constructed 3 picnic tables for THP’s farm. We really enjoyed connecting with their team, and are grateful for their time assisting with various projects. We are hopeful that other corporations are inspired to touch base with local social movements!

Huge thank you to Give to Get for coordinating such a successful event!

Note: Any photography or recordings created by The HEAL Project at all events are, and will remain the property of The HEAL Project for educational and promotional use only.