The final Nourishing Neighbors Exchange of 2024 took place on December 20th at the Grantsville Senior Center. The initiative began in June and was spearheaded by Mountain Laurel Medical Center (MLMC) with the goal of addressing food insecurity while also connecting individuals to local resources and programs that impact health and wellbeing on the individual level. Each week, MLMC was joined by different community partners at the exchanges, such as health plan insurers, various Health Department programs, community action and health education agencies, and other healthcare providers from around the region.
The Nourishing Neighbors Exchanges were funded by a Maryland Department of Agriculture grant, with support from several generous sponsors, including CareFirst, CareSource, Aetna Better Health of Maryland, Maryland Physicians Care, the Allegany County Health Department, Prescribe Change Allegany, the Maryland Rural Health Association, Allegany College of Maryland, and MonHealth Preston Memorial Hospital. The distributions featured boxes filled with a variety of fresh, locally grown produce, with special holiday distributions offering additional items such as turkeys, hams, apple and pumpkin butter, canned and shelf-stable goods, and fresh-baked bread. Over the course of the year’s 23 exchanges, more than 1,800 boxes were distributed to over 4,500 individuals across Garrett, Allegany, and Preston Counties and the surrounding region.
“We are incredibly proud of what we have accomplished through this effort,” said Corey Edmonds, MLMC’s Manager of Business Development and Community Relations. “It was a great opportunity to provide locally-sourced food for our community members in need, while also supporting our local farmers and connecting people to needed resources”.
The Nourishing Neighbors program has been awarded funding that will keep the initiative operational through 2027! This valuable community resource will be transitioning to the Western Maryland Food Council and the Appalachian Farm & Food Alliance in 2025. The award is just shy of $120,000 over three years from CareFirst’s Place-Based grants program. The program will continue to distribute fresh, locally grown produce to families in need across Garrett and Allegany Counties and will provide additional benefits, such as social resource connection, nutrition and gardening education, recipes and cooking demonstrations, and more! Mountain Laurel Medical Center looks forward to continuing to support the Nourishing Neighbors program as it continues to evolve and grow!