In 2019, Michiana VegFest, Inc. received a grant from Beacon Community Impact in South Bend to create an ongoing education program beyond our annual event. This new program, Michiana VegEDU, educates the community, specifically at-risk communities, on the health benefits of a plant-based diet.
The grant has enabled us to hire an educator and begin partnering with organizations such as The Center for the Homeless, YWCA, and SPA Women’s Ministry Home, to launch the Meatless Mondays Program. With these partners, we have been able to provide education, recipes, and resources, highlight plant-based proteins, prepare and serve plant-based meals as well as build relationships to create ongoing support for the program.
With the support of Beacon Community Impact, Michiana VegEDU looks forward to collaborating with more Meatless Monday partners such as The Boys & Girls Clubs of St. Joseph County, DePaul Academy, Dismas House, Mount Carmel Missionary Baptist Church, and the University of Notre Dame.
Michiana VegEDU is also very excited to bring the PlantPure Communities Oasis Jumpstart Program, a 10-day supported plant-based program, to the Michiana area. Over 20 of these programs have been successfully implemented around the country, including the south side of Chicago at Trinity United Church of Christ in 2015. The Oasis Program provides participants all of their plant-based snacks and meals for 10 days with pre/post-diet blood work so that they can learn and experience the health benefits and ease of a plant-based diet. The Oasis Program has been highlighted in films such as PlantPure Nation (2015) and The Game Changers (2019) with great success in reducing cholesterol levels, high blood pressure, BMI and more.
As a primary local source for plant-based information, Michiana VegEDU is planning to create more robust resources for our participants and our Michiana Community. Meanwhile, check these wonderful resources: