FOOD FROM PAGE 19 FOOD


spend two thirds of their wak- ing hours at school, and at most schools they get two of three meals per day there.”


Rossman cites one of the big-


gest difficulties is changing the current system of the govern- ment subsidizing school meals. Currently, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) subsidizes school meals according to the number of children who purchase them. In the case of San Diego City schools, the subsidy is $3.5 million out of a total $26 million spent by schools, according to Gary Petill, Food Service Director for the San Diego Unified School District (SDUSD).


The challenge is that most


children gravitate to items to which they’re accustomed to: high-sugar, high-starch, pro- cessed foods. Load the lunch line up with whole fruits, whole grains and other healthy snacks and the fear is children will stop buying and, thus, the subsidy will decline. A clear change in perception is needed, said Ross- man, and that begins with educa- tion (i.e. a pear is a whole piece of fruit with an edible green- yellow skin, not a syrup-heavy, skinless white fruit), which can only come from exposure. That puts ample pressure on schools administrators such as Petill who said the bill will ease some of the district’s woes, but that he has enacted many of the positive changes implemented over the last eight years in his cur- rent position. Petill has helped to establish salad bars in nearly every school in his district—the second largest in the state—and has also


FROM PAGE 22 RESOLUTIONS


even go online and purchase items she feels are needed and has them sent to her clients directly. She helps provide small storage containers and labels everything too. Davis said reorganizing and cleaning up your home is a great way to feel lighter. But best of all, that organization might help you tackle some of the bigger agen- das on the resolution list.


JUST SAY NO TO SMOKING The patches, the gum, cold


turkey, but you’re still smoking. Sound familiar? This year try something different and see if you can kick the habit for good. Christian Wasinger runs a hypnosis center at 842 E. Wash- ington St. and believes he can help his patients stop smoking with one hypnosis session and one follow-up visit—once and for all. “Smoking, in my opinion, is nothing more than a habit,” Wasinger said. “The definition of an addict is when we use a substance we need more and more to get the same effect over time, but the fact that people who are smoking can smoke about a pack for 10 or 20 years and never increase how much they smoke [disproves that].”


Some simple suggestions


Wasinger said are to change your routine and break your habits— move the chair you always smoke in, don’t talk about smoking and act like a non-smoker.


“Smokers usually have rituals,” he said. “They have habits, they have specific ways in which they


Sudoku Puzzle from page 19


instigated the School Breakfast Program, which is active in all City Heights and North Park schools. “The parts of [the bill] that will


help us are the funds and the grant money that we’re applying for and can apply for in the future. (This will impact) farm-to-school funding and education to introduce more local produce from farmers and growers,” Petill said.


Most exciting, is that the bill will


provide grant money for enrich- ment programs, Petill explained. “We’re going to ask for funding to actually be able to create har- vest kiosks, which we would like to put in middle and high schools, to offer fresh, local, organic—in most cases—salads, fruit cocktails, whole fruit,” he said.


This, he said, will go a long way in changing children’s perceptions of food. Over the last four months, SDUSD has sourced nearly 20 per- cent of its produce from area farms, such as its spring mix from Be Wise Ranch near Rancho Santa Fe, Calif. “We’re able to purchase it for the same price as romaine [lettuce] sprayed with vegetable preservatives (that’s been) sent to Los Angeles from Simi Valley, vacuum packed,” Petill said. This shift towards local sourc- ing means better nourishment for young students, a less obvious carbon footprint as it uses less gas for shipping and transport, and it also helps boost the local econo- my by supporting area growers. Petill has recently enlisted the services of three Southern Cali- fornia farms to provide broccoli for SDUSD schools. With a har- vest slated for a February harvest, Petill said this decision would help children to become more familiar with the foods they eat. The bill also requires the USDA to establish national nutri-


do things. It’s about breaking the pattern and consciously doing things in a different way.” During a hypnosis session,


Wasinger uses hypnotherapy techniques, such as neuro-lin- guistic programming and positive affirmations to unlock the mind and work with you to reprogram it. Once the session is over, you are also given a CD to take home which he said reinforces the affirmations learned during the session. For more information or to schedule an appointment, visit christianwasinger.com.u


tion standards for all food sold and served at schools. Vending machine vittles your tweens and teens have grown to love will eventually be excommunicated from campuses. Likewise, it requires the USDA to encourage physical activity and limit com- puter usage and to improve meal quality and make water available where children eat. Great im- provements, yet a few areas were overlooked, said Petell.


“I think this bill missed raising the income eligibility of families to qualify for meals,” he said. Currently, a family of five


must earn no more than $33,527 for their children to receive free meals. Reduced meals are available, in the case of families of five, for those earning under $47,712. These guidelines are consistent across the 48 contigu- ous states. Alaska and Hawaii are more heavily subsidized. “I feel they did an injustice in this bill by not identifying states that have a higher cost of living. In San Diego, if you have an apart- ment with a family of five, it might cost $1,200 per month. In Alabama, maybe $700. It costs more money for a family to survive in San Diego,” Petill said. Rossman is less impressed with


the direct funding outlined in the bill and more hopeful about the opportunities it holds for grant money, research and exposing more San Diego children to nutri- tious foods. Regardless of whether the bill’s merits are enough to sup- port Uptown schools (many of its line items aren’t actionable for a year or more), both Rossman and Petill plan to continue their full-throttle plight to feed your children well. And that is the sweetest news of all.u


San Diego Uptown News | Jan. 21-Feb. 3, 2011


23


Above, Hillcrest chef Jeff Rossman shows his son Aaron the fruits of local garden's labors. Below, children at the Hillcrest Academy of Temecula, Calif., show off a variety of herbs they grew themselves in a recent on-site garden project. (Courtesy of Jeff Rossman)


INVITED YOU’RE PUBLIC WORKSHOP


FOR THE SAN DIEGO INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT AIRPORT LAND USE COMPATIBILITY PLAN


The San Diego County Regional Airport Authority (SDCRAA) is in the process of updating the Airport Land Use Compatibility Plan (ALUCP) for San Diego International Airport (SDIA). The ALUCP for SDIA will play an important role in ensuring that future development in the vicinity of the airport is compatible with airport operations, and that SDIA can continue to meet the region’s aviation needs.


SDCRAA is hosting a Public Workshop to kick off the planning, public involvement and Steering Committee process for the SDIA ALUCP. The workshop will provide an opportunity for the public to learn more about ALUCPs and how they can participate in the planning process for the SDIA ALUCP.


Election Aftermath Crossword from page 19


Date: Time:


Location: Tuesday, January 25, 2011


Open House from 5:00-8:00 p.m. Courtyard by Marriott


San Diego Airport/Liberty Station 2592 Laning Road San Diego, CA 92106


For more information, please contact (619) 400-2457 or alucpcomments@san.org.


© 2011 San Diego County Regional Airport Authority. All rights reserved.


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