The Information Professional

"The San Antonio Public Library has been named a 2012 Top Innovator by the Urban Libraries Council (ULC) for its health and wellness partnership with the San Antonio Food Bank. The awards were announced on June 22 at the ULC Annual Forum in Newport Beach, California. Library Director, Ramiro S. Salazar attended the conference and accepted the award in person on behalf of the Library and the Food Bank.

The award recognizes the San Antonio Public Library’s program to provide area teens with nutrition education, better food choices, cooking classes, and summertime meals and snacks – information that could be crucial to residents of a city facing all the issues arising from a growing obesity problem. The healthy eating program content was based on the ideas and recommendations that came out of regular discussions with teens. As a result of those discussions, the Library’s Teen Services department enlisted the skills and expertise of staff at the San Antonio Food Bank, which provided a licensed nutritionist who supplied guidance to teens and librarians and taught them about making healthy meal choices that would appeal to a teen’s palate."