Snap-Ed « OSU Extension Internship Program

Hello again!

My name is Kimberly Alcaraz and I interned for the Oregon State University Extension Service in Lincoln County with SNAP-Ed and Family and Community Health. I will be going into my second year at Oregon State University in the fall, majoring in public health on the pre-med track. I want to become an emergency medicine physician and do my best to help anyone I can with a minor in Spanish. I was born and raised in Lincoln County, so I was very fortunate to be helping the community I grew up in with the many opportunities this program offers.

Kimberly Alcaraz presenting at a booth in Lincoln County. Photo: Felicia Olmeta Schult

My summer with Oregon State University Extension Service was amazing. This internship has been something that I have never done before or even thought I would do. This internship helped me learn about the awareness of social determinants of health, preparing me for the comprehensive perspective, which is key for my future career in the medical field. Being able to interact and listen to other people’s point of views and ideas has reassured my passion of wanting to be a doctor and help people no matter what. It strengthened the idea where understanding and collaborating is key when trying to provide the best care especially when it comes to people’s health. Being able to work in a professional environment during my internship was something I was looking forward to by developing skills like communication, working with others, and problem solving which I hope I continue to use when going through and becoming the doctor I strive to be.

Overall, being a part of food tastings, cooking class demonstrations and our Walk With Ease walking group has shown me how something so little can be so impactful. Food tasting and cooking class demonstrations provide a different point of view on how to approach the food you might have in your pantry and for some people providing the only meal people have a day, which makes me think that there can be change in the world even if it is so little. However, something I will never forget is the walking group I was privileged to be a part of and facilitate. Walk With Ease is a research-based program emphasis for people with arthritis being that it is published by the Arthritis Foundation, but is a program for everybody. Everything about building relationships with participants and them actually coming back for every session because they did feel like walking together was helping them, which made me happy that every day of this program was worth it. I feel that everything I have done in this internship will help me in my future challenges in my career because starting here has helped me shape the person I want to be in my professional career. I will always be grateful for my supervisor, everyone at the office, and OSU Extension for this amazing experience.

Hello, my name is Yolanda, and this is my fourth summer interning with Oregon State University Extension Service. This summer I lead a Walk With Ease group in Nyssa. This allowed community members to engage in physical activity at least three times a week and socialize with their neighbors. The goal for starting Walk With Ease in our county was to reduce isolation rates among community members, increase physical activity and increase awareness of healthy habits. Group members also received Food Hero resources each session. Seeing community members across all age groups enjoy each other’s company as we walked each morning was rewarding. I am beyond proud of my group because everyone started by walking 10 minutes the first week and over the course of the summer have now built up to walking 30 minutes three days a week. Walk With Ease was a beneficial and engaging program I highly enjoyed teaching this summer.

Yolanda Diaz showing an individual the Food Hero website at the WIC farmer's market. — Yolanda Diaz showing an individual the Food Hero website at the WIC farmer’s market. Photo: Barbara Brody

While I’ve worked at farmers markets in the past, this year I had the opportunity to work at the WIC (Women, Infant, and Children) farmers market hosted by the Malheur County Health Department. At the WIC farmer’s market, I engaged with over 400 families sharing the Food Hero website and explaining the various features they can utilize. Majority of the families I spoke to were not aware of Food Hero and everyone found it to be a very helpful resource. It’s always a delight to use my bilingual skills to assist community members who often struggle to access resources due to a language barrier. I learned that the WIC farmers market is more than a place to buy produce or share resources. It’s also a place to connect with families and community members who share the same environment, celebrate common successes, and face similar challenges.

Malheur County ranks at a high rate of food insecurity and there is much effort from families who do their best to tackle this challenge. Being at farmers’ markets and teaching about healthy nutrition, easy access and low-cost recipes, is one way I’ve seen Malheur County Extension contribute to the prevention and recovery of food insecurity. Community outreach has been one of my favorite parts of my internship. Being from Malheur County, I deeply value the opportunity to engage with families, students and community members. It feels like a direct impact is being made, leading to positive development. I am most fortunate to have been able to serve Malheur County this summer and look forward to contributing to all the continued work there is to deliver.

Hello again! My name is Chris Vasquez and I interned for the Oregon State University Extension Service this summer in Deschutes County, specializing in SNAP-Ed and horticulture. I am going into my third year at Oregon State University where I will be studying biohealth sciences with a minor in public health on the pre-pharmacy track.

Chris Vasquez teaches Food Hero recipes to resident at Bethlehem Inn Shelter for Homeless Individuals. Photo:Michaela Twarog

I grew up in Central Oregon and was extraordinarily fortunate to have the opportunity to work with the Extension Service in my home community. I decided to intern with OSU Extension this summer because I wanted to become more directly involved with my local community and more clearly understand populations I am not as experienced with. This internship taught me a lot about directly helping communities which I believe will extraordinarily benefit me in my future career endeavors. Since my last blog post, I have been productively busy with several side projects, online projects, and events. One highlight was our work with Bethlehem Inn where we taught cooking classes to homeless individuals. I could work directly with a community I was not as familiar with, a major goal I attempted to reach throughout this internship. Another highlight was the 2024 Deschutes County Garden Tour where I was able to help with tabling and guiding visitors to be more involved with the typically unfamiliar gardening community. I have also found myself working in our on-site demonstration garden, making Food Hero TikTok educational videos, attending local farmer’s markets, handing out recipes and samples at a mobile food pantry, volunteering in our plant clinic and finishing our Walk With Ease lessons at the senior center. The diversity in activities I have endured this summer allows me to leave with a strong sense of accomplishment I have been striving towards throughout my educational career. Throughout these endeavors, I have also learned to somewhat overcome my fear of public speaking. Through teaching opportunities, I have become comfortable with voicing my opinion and taking a leadership role in group dynamics. I feel that the work I have completed here will shape who I am for the rest of my professional life and inspire me to continue my community engagement efforts, as I am beyond fortunate for the opportunities presented to me during this internship.

Hi, my name is Heidi Moran and I have been an Oregon State University Extension intern in Union County intern. This summer was extremely busy but filled with so many incredible experiences! During my internship I mainly worked with 4-H and our Iron Chef cooking class through our Snap-Ed and 4-H programs. Before starting this internship, I was extremely involved in 4-H for nine years and my summers were always filled with many 4-H activities. As an intern I have enjoyed being able to work for 4-H and see all of the work and time that goes into putting on all of these summer 4-H events. Some of the events I helped prepare for were Eastern Oregon Livestock Show, Tri County 4-H Camp, Union County Fair, and preparation for the Oregon State Fair.

Heidi Moran, Lena Wheeling at Tri County 4-H Camp. Photo: Katie Hauser

One of the major 4-H events I helped with this summer was the Union County Fair. There is a lot of preparation work and behind the scenes work that goes into fair. The weeks leading up to fair I helped prepare exhibitor packets, clerk books and many other projects that were needed to be finished before fair began. During our pre-fair week, I clerked and helped out at the horse show. During fair I was able to clerk all of the livestock shows, help in our Oregon State Extension booth, and help prepare for the awards program. Even though it was a busy week at fair, it was fun being able to work at the fairgrounds and seeing 4-H members enjoying the fair.
Leading up to the Oregon State Fair I spent many hours preparing exhibits to be sent to Salem. I tagged all of the items, made sure that all of the exhibits had all of the necessary paperwork, and packaged them so they could safely to travel down to State Fair. It was a lot of work and took a long time but I enjoyed seeing the projects that kids had worked on all year and preparing them for State Fair.
This summer I also had the opportunity to work with our Iron Chef cooking class through the Snap-Ed program. Every Wednesday during the classes I helped make sure the kids were being responsible in the kitchen. The last class was a competition to see who could make the best one pot skillet meal. Kids were given the opportunity to be creative with what protein, grain, vegetable and sauce they were going to use in their skillet. I was asked if I would be one of the three judges for the competition. I enjoyed being able to see how creative some of the kids got with their skillets and how their cooking skills had improved over the course of the classes.
This internship has been an incredible experience. I was able to learn and grow from working with Extension. This internship has been a highlight of my summer the last two years and I am hoping to be able to do it again next summer. I am grateful for all of the experiences and relationships I was able to build this summer!

Holis! My name is Jazmin Contreras, and my time as the intern for the Oregon State University Extension Service in Hood River is coming to an end. This past summer has been incredible, from spending time with the amazing Extension staff, to getting to know community partners and going to Mexico again after 5 years. This summer has been beyond memorable.

A collection of images from Jazmin's internship — A collection of images from Jazmin’s internship

Since my last blog, I continued assisting with summer camp programming which was a lot of fun. On one occasion, our smoothie bike refused to smoothie (blend) and rather than be able to teach our campers the perks of a healthy smoothie, we taught them a valuable lesson in perseverance. I was very determined to get the smoothie bike to work and three calls to my supervisor and lots of pumping later, we were finally blending.

Another major component was my continued tabling. I tabled El Mercado del Valle, a back-to-school resource fair and the Hood River Latino Festival. My favorite part of tabling was being able to give my community smoke and air quality information as it became more and more pertinent to the current wildfire and smoke conditions in the Gorge. It felt rewarding to be able to give the information in Spanish to those that work in agriculture and tend to be exposed to smoke the most. Tabling alone, although nerve racking, allowed me to see my place within this community and this field of work. I am no longer just on the receiving end, I have the power to participate and facilitate change too.

The bulk of my time in this latter part of my internship has been spent on the research and writing of the 2025 Columbia Gorge Food Security Assessment background pieces. This experience really challenged my ability to self-direct and manage complex, open-ended tasks. I learned to persevere beyond my frustrations with the Bureau of Labor Statistics website and how to write and research topics that are very personal and emotional for me. This internship is not long enough for me to follow this assessment to completion, but I couldn’t be more grateful to be able to contribute to it.

While I don’t know exactly where life will take me after this, I hope it returns me to this type of work once again in my life. I hope that one day I can come back to answer all of the questions left unanswered in the food security assessment. In the meantime, I will return to Lewis & Clark College to start my third year of college. This upcoming semester, I hope to participate in the fall musical, present at the Race Monologues and begin taking classes towards my data science minor. In the spring, I will be studying abroad in Prague where I hope to take part in the International Economics and Finance Certification Program. I realize I have a very long road ahead, but as I head into the future, I will forever carry a sense of inspiration from the work I was able to partake in at OSU Extension.

Con mucho amor,
Jazmin Contreras <3

Hello again everyone! My name is Forrest Pratt, and I am wrapping up my Oregon State University Extension internship for the summer. I have had the great pleasure and privilege of working under the SNAP-Ed program in Linn and Benton counties.

Oregon State Extension "Blender Bike". Stationary bike that powers a blender. — Oregon State University Extension “Blender Bike”. Photo: Forrest Pratt

I have spent this summer supporting Food Hero’s community outreach programming. This has given me lots of opportunities to practice planning events and learning from previous events to plan to make future ones more successful. Putting on programs with a food component was new to me, so I learned a lot about how to make the tasting events go well. I always enjoyed bringing the food I made out to people in the community. Providing recipe tastings at farmers markets gave people the chance to try something new and gave me a chance to talk to them about how to include more fruits and vegetables into their lives.

In addition to the farmers markets, I’ve had a few opportunities to teach nutrition lessons to local youth camps and clubs. These events are always a lot of fun, and it’s very rewarding to chat with kids and families about healthy eating! One of the highlights of these classes has been bringing our blender bike, which blends a smoothie when the bike is pedaled. The kids are always very excited to try it and are more open to trying a new food when they were a part of making it.

My experience this summer has also opened my eyes to what goes on behind the scenes to make this kind of work happen. I got to learn about and help with a lot of the planning, preparation and collaboration that is necessary to get these events out to the public.

Overall, this has been a great summer of learning for me. I have a greater understanding of nutrition and food equity issues, and I will bring that with me into my future work in education and community outreach. I’m so grateful for all the people I worked with this summer – everyone at Extension has been so kind and welcoming and their support has made this summer so much easier and more fun!

This summer has been filled with amazing opportunities to engage with our community and connect with partners to serve Malheur County. A highlight for me during the latter half of my internship has been working in Adrian, Oregon. For the past few weeks, we have been running a “Kids in the Kitchen” cooking camp and a sewing camp once a week, in conjunction with local community members. It has been incredibly rewarding to watch the kids learn how to sew—a skill I don’t even possess—and to see them make healthy meals, growing their confidence and independence in the kitchen.

4-H campers measuring yogurt for parfaits — SNAP-Ed Kids in the Kitchen camper measuring yogurt for parfaits. Photo: Karrington Troyer

During the cooking portion of the camp, we taught the kids how to read a recipe and measure ingredients. It was so fun to watch them catch on quickly, and we were rewarded with delicious chicken alfredo! They also worked on practicing kitchen safety, such as knife cutting skills which is so important to teach at a young age! Along with their chicken alfredo they cut up fruit and made yummy yogurt parfaits. This program offers kids in rural communities the opportunity to master a lifelong skill and engage in productive activities during their downtime this summer. Additionally, it provides them with a new way to contribute to their households. Learning to cook healthy meals is crucial for ensuring proper nutrition and saving money by reducing the need to eat out frequently. I didn’t fully appreciate the importance of this skill until I moved out for college. With most of the students ranging from third grade to 10th grade, they are already getting a head start!
As my summer internship comes to an end, I am filled with gratitude towards Oregon State University Extension and my two supervisors, Barb Brody and Toiresa Frazier. These two women have taught me so much about resilience, as well as the importance of not only serving but also listening to your community and building relationships. Our summer programming has been focused on meeting the needs of the community and to ensure this, we conducted surveys at the end of our camps and programs to gather feedback on what participants enjoyed and what we could improve. This is just one small example of how the team continued to check in to make sure we were on the right path with our programming.
One of the key takeaways from this summer is that there is always room for improvement. It’s essential to slow down, re-evaluate, and ensure you’re meeting the community’s needs. I learned that there is a system of checks and balances in extension work that I hadn’t considered before. These principles and this level of care are what I hope to bring into every aspect of my life, both professionally and personally.

-Karrington Troyer

My name is Madeline Breiling and I’m now in my last week of my OSU Extension summer internship in Umatilla County. This summer has gone by so quickly with so many learning opportunities and fun events. I can’t believe my internship is almost over. Throughout the summer, I have had the opportunity to plan and assist with many projects. I was able to continue many of the projects I started and enjoyed last year, as well as start many new and exciting projects for this summer.

Interns Madeline Breiling (left) and Ashley Treadwell (right) in Umatilla county at the Pendleton farmers market. Photo: Carolina Muniz

At the very beginning of my internship, I got to assist with Extension’s table at the Morrow County Children’s Fair in Boardman. We did a food sampling of two different recipes that are healthier alternatives to common afterschool snacks. We also helped children plant radish seeds to start their very own garden. This was a great opportunity to jump straight into community engagement in the first couple of days of my internship.

Throughout my internship, I have had the wonderful opportunity to assist with many classes being taught all over the county by the Umatilla County SNAP-Ed team. I got to assist with smoothie making and seed planting with the Head Start kids at the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation. This was a very unique opportunity because this is the only event or class I’ve had the opportunity to do with preschool age children.

I also had the opportunity to assist with the Hydromania camp in Hermiston. Master Gardeners and researchers from the Extension office in Hermiston led an insect class. Then the SNAP-Ed team led a smoothie making class using the blender bike. This got the kids at the Hydromania camp very excited about healthy eating and physical activity.

Last summer, I handed out free food samples and educated the public about Food Hero at the Pendleton Farmers Market and the Milton-Freewater Farmers Market. This summer, I had the opportunity to expand that project by also handing out samples and educating the public about Food Hero at the Athena Farmers Market. I also got to assist with the Hermiston Farmers Market. I’ve always loved attending farmers markets and last summer I really enjoyed having a Food Hero table at the farmers market, so I am very excited I had the opportunity to continue and expand that project.

The project I am the proudest of is my work with St. Mary’s Outreach in Pendleton this summer. I got to hand out free food samples to everyone getting food from the food bank and educate them on Food Hero. I also gave the food bank many Food Hero resources to hand out to the public even when an OSU representative can’t be present. This included Food Hero tortilla recipes to tape to the bags of masa, Food Hero instructions for how to cook dried beans that are now included in every box of food the food bank hands out, and instructions for how to safely cook food in the microwave to give to members of the public who don’t have access to a stove or oven. I felt this project was very fulfilling because I felt that some of these community members would really benefit from having Food Hero resources. I also felt that my work has a more lasting impact because St. Mary’s Outreach continues to hand out the Food Hero resources I left with them to everyone who comes to get food.

Overall, I feel very proud of my work with OSU Extension this summer. I was able to take the lead on a variety of projects as well as assist team members with projects they were working on. I want to thank Shevon Hatcher for being the best person to share an office space with and for knowing the answer to any question you could think to ask, Carolina Muniz for supporting me in my projects and Karen Wagner for introducing new ideas to the Umatilla County SNAP-Ed team.

¡Hola!

My name is Flor Gaspar Marquez, and I am from Puebla, Mexico. In 2012, I embarked on a journey to the USA, speaking zero English. However, with determination, I conquered the language barrier. Currently, I’m an Oregon Coast Community College student majoring in Nursing. My career aspiration is to work initially in the Acute Care Unit, with a future transition into Public Health. I completed my first year of studies this summer and will begin my second year this fall. My strong belief in the transformative power of education fuels my passion to serve others through healthcare. Envisioning my future role as a nurse, I see myself contributing to a local hospital dedicated to assisting Hispanic individuals who encounter language barriers in accessing medical care and understanding community services. My experiences as an immigrant inspire my commitment to supporting fellow immigrants, ensuring they receive essential care and support without language obstacles.

Flor Gaspar Marquez in Lincoln county at the county fair. Photo: Flor Gaspar Marquez

My journey with the OSU Extension in Lincoln County began in 2021 during the pandemic. I collaborated with various organizations and local nurses at COVID-19 vaccination clinics, translating for Spanish-speaking individuals and supporting vaccination efforts. This experience deepened my passion for nursing and my commitment to positively impacting the Latino community. I am deeply committed to serving diverse communities and advocating for equitable access to healthcare for all.

This summer, I’m interning with the Extension for the second time with SNAP-Ed and Family and Community Health. As I wrap up my 10^th week, I have actively participated in diverse events such as the Lincoln County Fair, Cooking Matters sessions, Farmers’ Market Tours, and Food Tasting events at DHS, local stores, and WIC. Additionally, I’ve had the opportunity to participate in events at local kindergartens and camps, educating children about healthy eating habits and the importance of physical activity. In collaboration with my supervisor, we have initiated two new programs—Walk With Ease (WWE) and A Taste of Latin America Heritage. These experiences have been instrumental in boosting my confidence. Engaging with diverse communities and individuals of all ages has pushed me beyond my comfort zone, fostering significant personal and professional growth.

The WWE is an evidence-based program designed by the Arthritis Foundation that promotes daily walking to enhance joint flexibility, alleviate pain, and improve overall health through gentle exercises for everybody. Collaborating in this program has enabled me to develop essential skills such as event planning, organization, flyer design, marketing, teamwork, problem-solving, and utilizing tools like Qualtrics. These skills lay a solid foundation for my future career in nursing. I am eager to further cultivate my teaching and public speaking skills, expand my nutrition and physical fitness knowledge, and continue engaging with diverse communities. These competencies are vital for my aspirations in nursing and crucial for my growth journey. I am deeply grateful for the opportunity to contribute to meaningful initiatives through this internship. Witnessing the positive impact of our efforts on the community brings me immense joy and reaffirms my commitment to making a difference through healthcare.

Hello everyone!

My name is Kimberly Alcaraz and I am interning with Oregon State University Extension Service in Lincoln County with SNAP-Ed and Family and Community Health. I will be going into my second year at Oregon State University in the fall, majoring in Public Health on the Pre-Med track. I want to become an Emergency Medicine Physician and do my best to help anyone I can. I am very optimistic that this internship will help me open my eyes and see what the community really needs help with concerning health. I was born and raised in Lincoln County, so I am very excited to be helping in the community I grew up in with the many opportunity programs we offer.

Kimberly Alcaraz Walk With Ease — Kimberly Alcaraz with stretching Walk With Ease participants. Photo: Braden Alcaraz

This summer I hope to gain a better understanding and point of view on community based nutritional programs and how they impact public health, physically, emotionally, and even mentally. Nutrition is important because it’s a way to help develop and grow mentally and physically and just feel great about ourselves and help others feel healthy as well. This internship will help me learn about the awareness of social determinants of health, preparing me for the comprehensive perspective, which is key for my future career in the medical field. I am also looking forward to working in a more professional environment during my internship. I will develop skills that I will use in the future like, communication, working with others, and problem solving. I hope to use these skills to build the type of doctor and person I want to be.

That being said, I am now in my fifth week of my internship and I’m thrilled to share some of my achievements so far. Food tasting with Food Hero has been one of the most recurring events that I have been a part of during my internship. For these events we have been looking up healthy and simple recipes on the Food Hero website and then offering them to people from the food pantry, farmers markets, summer programs, and so much more. Doing these food tastings might seem boring but they can actually be fun and most importantly impactful. We provide a different point of view on how to approach the food you might have in your pantry and for some people provide the only meal sometimes people have a day. Overall, it’s something we can do to promote healthy eating for both kids and adults. Another thing I have done during my internship is help my supervisor with cooking classes and demonstrations. We have done this for both kids and adults and I have noticed they love it. People, especially kids love being involved with an activity like these which makes my internship so much more fun.

Lastly, the main thing I will be involved with this summer is a program called Walk With Ease. This program is to help reduce pain and improve overall health. Walk With Ease is a research based program emphasis for people with arthritis being that it is published by the Arthritis Foundation, but is a program for everybody. This program is very important to me and my internship because it’s something I helped plan from the very beginning. I have helped with brainstorming, flyer making, advertising, and help lead sessions to later lead a whole session on my own. However, being that we have only had one session so far, it has been so rewarding seeing how people might actually take something from this program. People from this program will gain confidence to exercise in which they will help with pain management, social interaction, and so much more.

Overall, my internship with the Oregon State University Extension Service in Lincoln County with SNAP-Ed and Family and Community Health has been a fantastic experience so far. I can’t wait to continue this experience to learn more and most importantly help the community that has always been in my life.

OSU Extension Internship Program

Tag Archives: Snap-Ed

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