Barack Obama once said, “Change will not come if we wait for some other person, or if we wait for some other time. WE are the ones we’ve been waiting for. WE are the change we seek.”

Dr. Dawn Opel, general counsel and director of research and strategic initiatives for the Food Bank Council of Michigan, is the change the council had been waiting for. Tune in to Food First Michigan on Sunday on WJR Radio at 9 PM, for one of the most impactful shows to date. Phil, Gerry Brisson, president and CEO of Gleaners Community Food Bank, and Dr. Dawn Opel, discuss a powerful project, the Grace Health Fresh Food Pharmacy. The Fresh Food Pharmacy project is uniting community based organizations with similar missions to have greater impact together.

Grace Health is a Federally-Qualified Health Center [FQHC] that serves over 30,000 patients in Calhoun county and surrounding areas. Grace Health is focused on meeting the health care needs of underserved people in the community. The Food Bank Council of Michigan teamed up with South Michigan Food Bank and Grace Health to address food insecurity and encourage healthy lifestyles.

Made possible by the Michigan Health Endowment Fund, this six-month pilot program “prescribes” home-delivered healthy food boxes for Grace Health patients every two weeks. In addition, the program offers healthy lifestyle coaching, check-ins, and support for cooking and eating healthy foods.

“Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.” –Hippocrates. This is the truth and the ultimate motto for many. Treating chronic illnesses is a TRILLION dollar business and a lot of that stems from childhood and not having access to healthy and nutritious food. There’s no $ in preventative health, but there should be. We MUST do better. Don’t come along for the ride, come along for the journey and join the movement by keeping #FOODFIRST!