October 26, 2001

The First Mainland Friday Food Fair was a HUGE success. Please thank the 
folks who selected such a wide array of beautiful food...it was really 
incredible. We had giant cabbages, plums, apples, peaches, red onions, 
potatoes, rice, Portobello mushrooms, orchids, celery, candy, and several 
variety boxes and some holiday gourds and Indian Corn!!! The Fair was held 
in the parking lot of the Community Family Center at 2000 Texas Avenue in 
Texas City. The building houses several social service agencies and the 
County 4 C's Clinic. We made arrangements with the Mainland Youth at Risk 
organization to use the parking lot and dispose of the trash in their 
dumpster.

The staff of The Jesse Tree and Jesse Tree volunteers brought the tables, 
signs and sign-in sheets. Volunteers from The Bay Area Recovery Center, 
Pathway to Recovery and the ADA Women's Center helped unload the truck and 
distribute the produce. The team of Care Coordinators (all registered 
nurses) screened for diabetes, hypertension, substance abuse and mental 
illness in addition to registering people for primary care at the County 
Clinic. 

The Luke Society - blood pressure screening
Mainland Youth at Risk - CHIP and WIC applications
The Jesse Tree - Social Service Screening, Referrals
Child Protective Services - Family mentoring program
Family Support Services - anger management and parenting programs
Veteran's Affairs Outreach - Veteran Screening
Galveston County Health District - flu shots and registering patients for 
primary care
UTMB Department of Community Outreach - Care Coordination (disease management 
screening and enrollment in classes)
Galveston County Immunization Coalition - childhood immunizations
Senior Citizens Screening - QMB screening
Gulf Coast Career Center - employment screening

Agencies that picked up food for their programs:

Our Daily Bread - homeless services
The Texas City Salvation Army
Our House - Recovery Program
Care Coordination - Diabetes Class Food Boxes
Pathway to Recovery
Gulf Coast Legal Foundation - screening for those denied Food Stamps/WIC

The final count was 189 individuals served who represented 650 family 
members; two persons requested detox and were referred for treatment; 89 
people received flu shots, all were screened for all services listed above. 
It was a HUGE success. I also played the accordion for an hour. There was 
some dancing and singing. We took lots of pictures, so I'll let you know 
when they are posted on the web. Check out www.jessetree.net for pictures of 
the Island Food Fair. Thanks again for making this possible. It was great.

Ted Hanley