Podcasts Health The Produce Moms Podcast Episode 2: Why Fresh Produce is Changing LIves with Lisa Helfman // Founder of Brighter Bites

Episode 2: Why Fresh Produce is Changing LIves with Lisa Helfman // Founder of Brighter Bites

Published: May 8, 2018, 11:15 p.m.

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\\u201cThere\\u2019s a disconnect on how food affects our health. I want to be having that conversation, so people understand what a direct impact it has \\u201d

For several years, Lisa Helfman and her family took part in a weekly fruit and vegetable co-op, and she watched her children\\u2019s eating habits dramatically transform. So much so that her little boy turned down a piece of cake at a birthday party, craving instead the blueberries he\\u2019d grown fond of eating at home.

\\u201cWe believe that our only goal is to make an impact\\u201d

Like most moms, Lisa realized this was a fairly significant decision for a six-year-old, and she wondered what kind of influence regular access to fresh produce might have on all children. Especially if that produce was free to families.

\\u201cYou can be empowered to take control of your health and live a happier healthier life by eating right - and the key to eating right is fresh produce\\u201d

She was inspired to replicate this type of positive change in underserved communities identified as \\u201cfood deserts,\\u201d or areas where access to grocery stores stocked with fresh fruits and vegetables is sorely limited. Because nutrition education in these communities is often equally lacking, Lisa\\u2019s vision was to bring a produce co-op to schools in these neighborhoods that included an educational component.

\\u201cPeople are sick in our community and they could be healthy just by eating right\\u201d

She created a collaborative partnership between the Houston Food Bank and Dr. Shreela Sharma, an expert in nutrition and a professor of epidemiology at UTHealth School of Public Health, and they launched the program now known as Brighter Bites. Four years later, Brighter Bites has delivered more than 8,000,000 pounds of fresh produce to over 20,000 families at over 90 sites in Houston, Dallas, and Austin.

When she isn\\u2019t pushing kids to eat kale smoothies, Lisa is Director of Real Estate for H-E-B and is working on the company\\u2019s significant expansion in Houston. Prior to joining H-E-B, Lisa served as Director of Real Estate Services at Texas Children\\u2019s Hospital where she created the Real Estate Services Department in order to centralize the hospital\\u2019s real estate operations. Lisa worked at Texas Children\\u2019s for seven years after leaving Vinson & Elkins where she represented many urban redevelopment clients, non-profits, and government entities in financings, real estate, and other general matters. Lisa received her JD from University of Houston Law Center and her BA from Tulane University.

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Some Topics we talk about in this episode:

  • Introduction // Lisa Helfman - 0:45
  • Give Healthy Food Drive - 2:05
  • How Brighter Bites got started - 3:15
  • Why Fresh Food? - 5:09
  • Brighter Bites and the \\u201cAccess Issue\\u201d - 6:40
  • Brighter Bites Programs - 11:30
  • Integration with schools and kids - 14:30
  • The Bright Bites Audience - 17:15
  • The Myth of Food Shortage - 24:12
  • How Brighter Bites is Changing Lives - 27:00
  • How You Can Get Involved - 32:20
  • Wrap-up - 35:29

We are hosting a \\u201cGive Healthy\\u201d Food Drive to support the amazing work that Lisa and her team at Brighter Bites are doing. Text the words \\u201cGive Healthy\\u201d to 55498

We will send you a link to the \\u201cGive Healthy\\u201d Food Drive as well as a Brighter BItes Wish List!

For more information, visit www.brighterbites.org

How to get involved

If you liked this episode, be sure to subscribe and leave a quick review on iTunes. It would mean the world to hear your feedback and we\\u2019d love for you to help us spread the word!

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