UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital wants to help families make healthier choices

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) – For many, taking care of their family is a top priority and that includes what you eat.

But right now, it’s difficult for many due to the cost of food, limited time or even just the lack of knowledge on how to cook.

KDKA-TV recently traveled to UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital and discovered there’s something special growing inside.

“This is my favorite thing in the whole garden, this is actually a fig tree,” said Jon Polley, production manager and executive chef at UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital.

It’s a special connection people are making outside of the hospital’s walls.

“We’ve really embraced how amazing it is to grow produce on-site and all the amazing things we can do,” Polley said.

KDKA-TV took a stroll with Polley in the courtyard at Magee. Lush, beautiful flowers certainly capture the attention. But if you take a closer look, you just might find something edible.

Vegetables and herbs are grown in the courtyard before making their way to patients’ plates.

“Being able to pull greens straight out of the ground, cook them and serve them that day, being able to harvest our own tomatoes and get them on sandwiches and get them on the salad bar,” Polley said.

But this year, the staff decided to show off their hard work by delivering produce to a community market. At the Wilkinsburg Farmers Market, KDKA-TV saw staff members giving away some of the produce and teaching people how to use vegetables they may not know much about.

This is the first time UPMC has been involved in a community market like this, but it won’t be the last. UPMC said it wants to help people make healthy choices.

“The true takeaway of this market is to build the sense of community so that they walk away feeling good, feeling welcome and having been educated for a healthy lifestyle,” said Vicky Cherney with the Wilkinsburg Community Advancement Association.