‘Feed a Family’ idea Blooms in Moscow

Food insecurity can become increasingly difficult for families in need during the winter months, so one Moscow restaurant owner is stepping up to support that community.

Nara Woodland, owner of Bloom Cafe, a Moscow breakfast and lunch staple, recently launched “Healthy Home: Feed a Family” to put food on the tables of local families. Woodland said the campaign is designed to build upon other philanthropic efforts and raise awareness about food insecurity.

“It is really a part of Bloom’s mission and goal to give back to our community and make a positive difference wherever we can,” Woodland said. “This is just one step.”

The campaign was kickstarted at the beginning of November through collaboration with public and charter schools of Moscow. Its mission is to work with local schools to find families who can benefit from healthy, fresh meals that can be heated up at home. Bloom prepares, then delivers the meals to schools each week, where counselors and principals connect them with families in need.

Funding for the program is donation-based, and Bloom matches donations from community members in order to increase meal sizes and serve full families.

Meals provided for families are made fresh and almost ready-to-eat. Preparation simply requires baking them in the oven or heating them up on a pan in the stove — this makes the process feasible for families with busy schedules.

Along with the food, conversation cards are also included with each meal to encourage mealtime discourse among families.

“At the dinner table, it’s hard to come up with interesting topics to talk about sometimes,” Woodland said. “It’s a fun way to encourage inspired conversation among families.”

Examples of conversation card prompts include, “What is your favorite piece of art?” and “Who is it you most look forward to seeing at school each day, and why?”

The program has delivered meals to several Moscow schools in November. On a recent Friday, nine family-sized meals were prepared and distributed.

“It’s so exciting. This has been the biggest donation yet, and that just tells me that the community can connect with what we’re doing and is willing to engage with it,” Woodland said. “This is going to go beyond the holidays, and it is going to be something that is a staple program for us at Bloom.

For more information or to purchase a meal for a family in need, visit www.bloommoscow.com/healthy-at-home.

Ellen Dennis can be reached at (208) 883-4632 or by email at briefs@dnews.com.