Monthly Archives: February 2014

America Saves. NOVA Saves. Are You Saving? Set Goals. Take the Pledge…

This week is America Saves week.
Virginia Cooperative Extension (VCE) Arlington coordinates the America Saves/ Northern Virginia Saves campaign (www.northernvirginiasaves.org).

Visit  www.northernvirginiasaves.org to set your goals and make your pledge to save today!

In celebration of America Saves/Northern Virginia Saves week, VA Cooperative Extension Arlington collaborated with Arlington Community Federal Credit Union and Marymount University to host a series of “Lunch and Learn” professional development sessions.

Informative topics and speakers were:

  • Understanding Credit, Susan Shockey, National Program Leader at NIFA/USDA
  • The Truth about Retirement Plans & IRA’s, Ed Schweitzer, CFP(R) of Edelman Financial Services
  • Goal Oriented Savings, Momodou Bojang, Financial Advisor with ACFCU

Upcoming VCE Arlington Financial Education events:

Credit Report Reviews at DHS
VCE Arlington Financial Educators will offer credit report reviews through April at Alexandria DHS offices (703-746-5700) and Arlington DHS offices (703-228-1300).
Please contact your DHS office for days and times.

Finance Events in the Schools
VCE Arlington Financial Educators continue to  host several Reality Store and Kids Marketplace finance simulation events in Arlington schools.

Financial Education Seminars
Check the VCE Arlington website calendar and your local library calendars for upcoming financial seminars presented by VCE Arlington in April and May.

 

Senior Nutrition Classes: Seafood, Nuts, and Seeds

As we age, our nutritional needs and health concerns change. Virginia Cooperative Extension is helping to ensure the 55+ population in Arlington takes a preventative approach to their health. VCE partners with Arlington Senior Centers  to provide cooking and nutrition classes. These programs provide healthy, easy, and affordable recipes alongside sound nutritional information. In short, they allow people to taste new foods and learn tools to simplify cooking. With this knowledge, participants can ensure they are getting the nutrients they need while limiting the ones they don’t, like saturated fat, sugar, and sodium.

So far this year, classes have focused on eating more nuts, seeds, and seafood. These foods have more in common than one may think. Nuts, seeds, and seafood all add healthy fats and a varied source of protein to our diet. Below is a picture from one of this years’ classes in which FCS Agent Katie Strong, MS, RD, demonstrates tasty ways to add nuts and seeds into everyday dishes.

photo (3)

Here are 5 fun ways to enjoy nuts and seeds in your diet!

1. Toasting walnuts or almonds in the oven for only a few short minutes gives them an additional delicious flavor. You can then eat them plain or add them to salad and yogurt.

2. Use rolled oats to make homemade granola with your favorite nuts and seeds.

3. Let peanut butter share the shelf with some other nut pastes like almond, hazelnut, or even sesame paste (also know as Tahini).

4. Mix in ground flax seed to a fruit smoothie for some added fiber and healthy fat.

5. Try adding chia seeds to your milk or milk substitute and season with cinnamon and vanilla for a tapioca like pudding

Nut Tip: Buy nuts from the baking aisle of your supermarket. They are often the most inexpensive in this aisle and do not have any added salt or sugar.

Find senior classes this spring in the Arlington 55+ guide.

By Sally Hammer, Virginia Tech Dietetic Intern 2013-2014

Inspiration and Impact:

In January, Arlington and Alexandria VA Cooperative Extension Master Gardeners and 4-H Youth Leaders and agents trained Arlington County staff on some Junior Master Gardener projects. Tomorrow staff at Westover Library are hosting Kids in the Garden – a program inspired by what they learned at the Cooperative Extension training.
The kids will plant some seeds to take home – and see how they grow…

Look out for more youth gardening activities this season at the libraries and in Arlington County Dept of Recreation after-school programs.

And let’s grow these inspirational and successful VA Cooperative Extension training programs!

Poster by Westover Library staff.

Poster by Westover Library staff.