Healthy Community Zones Teach Importance of Fresh Foods, Healthy Eating

April 27, 2026

Story and Photography by Neil Moran

Kathryn and Russell Hastings tour the gardens at Gordon’s Produce, gaining a deeper understanding of how locally grown produce contributes to healthy families and communities.

Last summer, the Chippewa County Health Department launched the Healthy Community Zone, or HCZ, an initiative to encourage people to get outdoors and eat nutritious food. With the help of area farmers, the program is teaching adults and children how to grow, prepare and store fresh produce.

The program is part of a larger Healthy Community Zones initiative funded by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. This program invests in community-led solutions to reduce racial health disparities in Chippewa County, Saginaw County and the city of Detroit. Grantees are implementing projects focused on food access, nutrition, physical activity and social cohesion.

“Our main goal for the program is to teach people that they can grow their own fruits and vegetables at home and use them in their meals and preserve them,” says Chippewa County Health Department HCZ Grant Coordinator Alexys Leach.

Leach says the goal of the grant program is to address the problem of obesity in the county, as identified by the data collected by the health department over the past several years.

Daisy Newhouse explores the greenhouse at Gordon’s Produce, learning firsthand how fruits and vegetables are grown and how gardening can support healthy habits at home.

Last summer, the program was limited to individuals enrolled in the USDA’s WIC program. Twenty families participated, which included on-site visits to a local farm where fresh foods are abundant, as well as educational videos and other learning opportunities. Leach says she has plans to expand to 60 families this year and the response from last summer is encouraging.

“They were super excited to learn,” says Leach, referring to both children and adult participants. “It’s super nice to see the kids involved.”

The mission of the HCZ program is to increase awareness of nutritional value, affordability and accessibility of locally grown produce to make healthy eating sustainable and cost-effective for families across the region.

Participants of the program visit working farms where vegetables are being grown for market. Steve and Vicki Gordon, proprietors of Gordon’s Produce, welcomed families to their farm to tour their greenhouse and vegetable gardens. Steve signed on to the program last spring and has found it to be a rewarding experience to share what can be grown in this area.

Steve Gordon, of Gordon’s Produce, shares insights from his greenhouse with Mary Mattson, of Emergence Collective, during a Healthy Community Zone farm visit. The program connects local growers with community partners to expand access to fresh, locally grown food.

“Families want to do this stuff, but don’t know where to start,” says Gordon. “I like seeing people get excited about gardening and eating fresh produce—that’s the reward.”