Inspiring man

I was going to talk about healthy breakfasts but changed my mind and decided to talk about one man whom I think is v inspiring to me. He is Jamie Oliver. I don't know if anyone of you has been watching his recent TV programme about his food revolution in the US but I have and have to admire him. Following his success last year he has gone back but to LA this time, a much bigger place and one of the places that is obese. From the start he has come up with barriers to his revolution in that one man on the school board has forbidden him to be programmed in any school because he fears that Jamie will make the schools look bad. Jamie managed to get into one school where he's had a massive affect on the pupils there, mainly teens. He got a group of teens cooking and be interested in cooking healthy foods for themselves, family and other pupils but then he hit a problem and couldn't film in the school and had to be pushed to the back of the school and only cook for a handful of children. But now he has a way to teach all the school in what was called the advisory slot where the school are shown something as a whole and have samples eg lunch. But that came to an end when Jamie's programme had to stop filming there. He also tried to persuade a drive-thru manager to change his cooking habits and where he got the meat from, but that was hard and it was only a local nurse who changed the man's mind after thanking him in wanting to change the way people eat. Jamie has also got a family's eating habits to change by showing the father how much junk food they ate in a year, and now they cook from scratch and are growing their own herbs and veg etc.

Next week is the last in the series and I can't wait. It looks as though things are starting to look up for Jamie as a new school's superintendent has been voted in (to replace the old one who forbade Jamie to go in schools), Jamie organises a wide cookery contest for schools and there is other good news that I can't wait to hear about.

One thing I have heard is that the LAUSD (the board who was against Jamie) have voted to kick out flavoured milks in schools. Three cheers for Jamie. Well done, and keep it going. You are one inspiring man.

It was Jamie's original school dinners programme in 2005 over here that inspired me to write my first children's book Rosie and the Sick School (available from me), and continues to inspire me in trying to get children to eat healthily still by promoting my book, even though it's now out of print. Watch my other blog for news on this.

Next week is recycle week, so will be posting all about that with challenges for you out there.