NORWICH – A group of Head Start families are eating healthier, feeling better and saving money after participating in a cooperative program sponsored by Head Start and Cornell Cooperative Extension.

The goal of the hands-on seven week program, called Parents As Cooking Partners, was to teach them how to purchase, cook and prepare healthy meals for their families.

According to Betty Clark, nutrition program coordinator for Cornell Cooperative Extension, the eight parents who participated in the pilot program learned about the benefits of eating fruits, vegetables, whole grains and low fat dairy. They also learned about food safety, how to shop more wisely, read labels, budget their household expenses and tried out plenty of new recipes throughout the course.

Their coach through the process was Carol Loefstedt, a nutrition educator with Cornell Cooperative Extension.

The program’s curriculum is part of Eat Smart NY, the federally-funded nutrition program for food stamp and WIC recipients.

“Head Start families are automatically eligible for our program,” explained Clark. It seemed a natural fit for her to partner with her counterpart at that agency, Head Start Nutrition Coordinator Sharon Provo.

Instead of the home visits usually conducted through Eat Smart NY, it was decided to hold a centralized class which would help Head Start parents network.

Besides, Provo said, “it’s more fun to cook in a group,”

Clark and her staff provided the know-how, while Head Start spread the word to parents, provided transportation to and from Norwich and purchased graduation “gifts” for the parents who attended at least six of the seven weeks.

With budget cuts looming, she added, it’s more important than ever that programs cooperate.

Parents who participated agreed that it was a worthwhile experience.

“We signed up the first day we heard about it,” said Amberlyn Spinella of New Berlin.

She and her husband Anthony, who also took the class, have two young children, one of which is in Head Start. The couple said that learning how to read nutrition labels, compare unit pricing and stick with a household budget were some of the most valuable things they gained during the course. They enjoyed the recipes as well.