EATS, a Park City nonprofit that focuses on building healthier generations through nutritious food, is having its annual fundraiser. It’s called FORK in the Road, and it’s happening this Saturday at 5 p.m. at Deer Valley’s Legacy Lodge.
EATS Program Manager Natalie Kane says the fundraiser will serve food for all types of palates, including vegan and vegetarian, “But you're gonna have all different options for all different types of food that you want to eat. And live music. Like I said, there's also going to be a silent auction. We're really excited this year our goal is to raise $100,000 For all of eats is edible education and our essential life skills programming.”
The funds raised will go directly to providing backpack meals, edible education, including cooking classes, nutrition education, school gardens and expanding community’s access to nutritious food.
Kane says that EATS provides programs in the local elementary schools that educate kids on growing food as well as its disposal.
“We started at Parleys Park Elementary School at the beginning of this school year working with the elementary school students and the teachers there to divert food waste away from the landfills and down to Wasatch resource recovery. So the food waste goes down into that facility and it's changed into compost are converted into compost and put back into the natural gas pipeline as well. So we're really excited about that program and to expand into Jeremy Ranch Elementary school too. We've seen a lot of success with that program.”
Kellie Hill, who recently moved to Park City and is the new EATS garden and sustainability manager, says working with kids and seeing them discover food they’ve grown is the most rewarding part of her job.
“Oh, yeah, my favorite story is that this kid hated tomatoes. And then they made Pico to Gaia with our old gardens and sustainability manager. And he went home and he was like, let's make Pico. And his mom was like, well, you hate tomatoes. And he was like, Oh my gosh, that's what isn't Pico. That's a tomato. And he suddenly loved it because he got to pick it fresh from the vine. So growing food has a big part in eating healthy.”
Tickets to the FORK in the road fundraiser can be purchased at EATSParkCity.org
