The Client Education program is a collaborative and organized response to improve the health and financial well-being of low income Winona residents. Currently, the program is made up of three major components:

• Moving Ahead to Financial Freedom
• Simply Good Eating (Farmer's Market Coupon Classes and Earn A Turkey classes)
• Nutritional Taste Sampling and Recipes
  

The first component of this program is Moving Ahead to Financial Freedom (MAFF). This is a group of individuals from Habitat for Humanity, Hiawatha Valley Education District, Merchants Bank, SEMCAC, United Way, Winona State University, Winona Volunteer Services and Winona Workforce Center that work together to put on a series of classes that provide training in money management skills and access to community contacts. Through these workshops, we work to help people become better managers of their own resources. Classes have included Budgeting 101, Budgeting 1 on 1, How to Get Out of Debt, How to Get a Job that Pays More, Wonderful Holidays on a Budget and The Energy Education Panel.

The second component, Simply Good Eating, promotes healthy eating and food preparation in hour-long classes.  Annette Shepardson and Nadine Bayer, Community Nutrition Educators (CNE) from the University of Minnesota Extension, conduct the classes and share their expertise by educating and engaging the participants on various topics.

 During the summer months, these classes will focus on food items that can be obtained from the Winona Farmer’s Market (WFM). The instructors will encourage participants to taste in-season produce, share their preparation tips and explain the nutritional value of eating locally grown fruits and vegetables. For attending a class, each adult will receive one five-dollar coupon redeemable at the WFM. Attending more classes will earn the individual more coupons to the local market. Classes will start in June 2011 and run through September.  Food shelf households attending a minimum of four classes will also receive a turkey certificate for Thanksgiving.

The third component is handing out Nutritional Taste Samples and Recipes on the first Wednesday of every month from 2:00 – 5:00 to recipients of the Mothers and Children program (MAC) and Nutrition Assistance Program for Seniors (NAPS). Individuals picking up this balanced food box are invited to taste the sample product and to talk with Annette Shepardson on how to best use these food items for optimum nutrition.Nutritional taste samples and related recipes are handed out to food shelf customers on Taste Testing Tuesday, the first Tuesday of the month from 11am -1pm and again on Taste Testing Thursday, the third Thursday of the month from 3pm - 6pm.