Category: Health
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Boston Bounty Bucks Gives SNAP Discount At Farmers Markets
Robert Sondak Spare Change News Beginning in May, which is the start of the farmers market season, the Boston Bounty Bucks program will mark its fourth birthday. So far, 20 Boston-area farmers markets will participate in this double value food program, which allows households with food stamps (SNAP) to make food purchases at any of…
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Smoke-free or free to smoke? BHA moves to ban lighting up inside public housing units
Adam Sennott Spare Change News The Boston Housing Authority is taking steps toward protecting its residents from the dangers of second-hand smoke. However, some residents feel their rights are being violated. The Boston Housing Authority is moving forward with plans to implement a smoke-free housing policy in September 2012. This policy will prohibit residents and…
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Anti-Hunger Network Struggles to Meet Growing Need for Healthy Food
Noelle Swan Spare Change News Nearly one in every 20 households in Massachusetts reported cutting back on the size and frequency of meals from 2008 to 2010, because they could not afford food, according to recent data from the USDA Economic Research Service. This figure represents only half the picture of hunger in Massachusetts, counting…
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Corporate Catering for a Cause
Robert Sondak Spare Change News Pine Street Inn, the largest resource for homeless men and women in New England, has created a social enterprise catering business called iCater. iCater represents one of the two social enterprises run by the Pine Street Inn. iCater offers high-quality catered food to the Boston corporate marketplace. Boston Handyworks represents…
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Success in St. Bartholomew’s Meal Program
Robert Sondak Spare Change News The Feed the Hungry Wednesday night meals program at St Bartholomew’s Episcopal Church on Harvard Street in Cambridge has grown rapidly in a matter of four months since its inception last October. Feed the Hungry has expanded into a community service organization with over 40-campus members. Interest among students at…
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MIT Students Open Soup Kitchen; Diners Wanted
Alexander R. Moore Spare Change News During these difficult economic times, even the most prosperous feel the clutch of despair. It is put on our doorstep then, as humans, to share what wealth we do have with those less fortunate than ourselves. Our duty is to spread happiness; the alternative is to surrender to the…
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Editorial: Food stamp demagoguery
It is a callous and cynical game. Ronald Reagan showed us how it works with his mythic welfare queen from Chicago’s South Side, playing to the nation’s emotions and fueling suspicions and jealousies among voters. Today, the food stamp program is portrayed as a big government handout to a growing entitlement class. Republican presidential contender…
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Healthy Eating Habits and Locally Grown Foods
Robert Sondak Spare Change News In an effort to promote healthy eating habits and Massachusetts-grown produce, Governor Deval Patrick launched a free online monthly newsletter called “ChopChop”. This newsletter was created in partnership with “ChopChop” magazine, a national quarterly publication that focuses on bringing parents and children together to prepare meals. “We are committed to…
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DESPITE RISE IN TAX RECEIPTS, STATE’S FIXED COSTS MEAN MORE SPENDING CUTS
By Kyle Cheney STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE STATE HOUSE, BOSTON, JAN. 12, 2012 Massachusetts residents should brace for another year of program cuts and elimination of services, Gov. Deval Patrick’s top budget adviser warned Thursday, citing the growth of budget-busting accounts that he said will be the target of a new round of reforms. Even…