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FORT BLISS, Texas - It’s getting close to payday, time to check beneath the couch cushions and under the car seat for loose change and head to the coin-cashing machine. Or perhaps there is a little more room on the credit card than previously thought. Somehow, there has to be a way to get gas in the tank, and food on the table before that paycheck clears in the bank account. Such is the life of the lower enlisted.
Fortunately, the Army has resources for us to utilize so that our paychecks will stretch a little further each pay period. One such resource is “Dinner on a Dime,” a 6-month-old program run by Aisha Ruhland, a financial educator with Army Community Service. The free program is offered twice per month at the Milam Youth Center on East Bliss. The mission of the program is to offer low-cost meal ideas to Soldiers, and show them how to prepare such meals with hands-on lessons. The classes are open to all soldiers and spouses who are interested.
The program began as a once per month endeavor, but quickly switched to twice per month with a greater demand for the class said Ruhland. The location also switched from the ACS building kitchen to the Milam Youth Center as a result of the growing demand.
“Dinner on a Dime” is usually scheduled close to pay days so that soldiers and their families will have fresh meal ideas before heading to the commissary. New ideas for meals are something that Ruhland is enthusiastic about offering each class.
“I am at peace when I cook, I feel inspired,” said Ruhland, who grew up in military family. “I love to give people different recipes with different foods and allow them to make it their own.”
In addition, Ruhland stated that the program allows spouses to have a social outlet to meet one another. As a military spouse herself, she is familiar with the feelings of other military wives who want to meet new people. To add a new dynamic, the November 18 class will be a recipe exchange where class members will prepare their own recipes and exchange them with each other.
Furthermore, to keep the program fresh and interesting, Ruhland gives each class a thematic lesson plan. Ranging from French, Mexican, and West Indian cuisine, each class offers new and interesting meal ideas at low-costs. For this reason, Ruhland suggests the use of chicken breasts and ground beef for many of her recipes as they are cost-efficient ingredients.
Before flipping furniture in search of those last few pennies to get by with, consider nixing the nights out at restaurants and fast-food joints and signing up at ACS for this free program. The opportunity to learn something new and enhance your dining options is a difficult proposition to pass up, especially when it is free.
| Date Taken: | 11.15.2010 |
| Date Posted: | 11.23.2010 14:25 |
| Story ID: | 60738 |
| Location: | FORT BLISS, TEXAS, US |
| Web Views: | 48 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Dinner on a Dime- Financial educator brings low-cost meal ideas to soldiers, by SPC Bruce Daddis, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
