Mark your calendars! On Tuesday, September 25 from 5-8:30 p.m. is the 12th Annual Women's Health Night at the Robinson Community Center. This is a fantastic FREE event so come out for a good time. If you would like more information, please call Sheri at 546-2671. Door prizes will be given.

5-7 p.m. - Booths, screenings and buffet

7-8 p.m. - Sheryl Roush, Speaker

Are you bored and want something to do? If so, be a Lunch Buddy to a kid! You will feel better and a kid will know someone cares about them. Lunch Buddy Partners are needed to go into the schools and eat lunch in the cafeteria with your "buddy"! Contact Donna Atteberry (The Next Chapter bookstore) at 544-2757.

Have you heard all the talk about "going green"? Have you wondered what you can do to help the earth? The Crawford Solid Waste Disposal Service on Easton Road will take several of your "throw-away" items thus keeping them out of our landfills. Here are the items they take:

• Tin/metal cans – they do not have to be washed out or labels taken off (ex: soup cans, vegetable cans, etc.)
• Aluminum – (ex: pop cans, tuna cans) It is NOT a problem if the metal and aluminum cans get mixed up.
• Plastic – do not take off labels (ex: any kind of plastic container – even Tupperware, detergent/bleach bottles, pop/water bottles, etc. Anything plastic!
• Newspapers/Magazines
• White computer paper that has been used and you want to throw it away! *Attention business owners!
• Corrugated cardboard – it's where you can see the "waffle-weave" in the middle (ex: cardboard boxes)

Their facilities are located in the first building south of the Victor Dana road.

RUBBER RECYCLING PROJECT - Marathon Petroleum Company is partnering with the City of Robinson in an effort to recycle used tires and athletic shoes. This event is coming up in the month of October. More details will be available in the October newsletter.

The Crawford County HEA ladies are continuing their efforts to collect "hotel-sized" shampoo/conditioner/bar soap/etc. for the residents at The Heritage Home in Hutsonville! Drop them off at the Extension Office or Senior Ctr.! They LOVE those items! We will be taking the collected items to the home in November for Veteran's Day! They could also use: belts, non-skid slippers, body lotion, shaving cream, denture cream, toothpaste and brushes, umbrellas, rain gear, socks, tissues, wet-ones, phone cards, large print novels, stamps and stationary, puzzles, word puzzles and current magazines! They love those cheap, thin wash clothes that come in a bundle. And any individually wrapped snack item! Please no aerosol cans!

LIVING WITH WILDLIFE IN ILLINOIS - The Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) and U of I Extension have developed a new website – Living with Wildlife in Illinois to help Illinois residents coexist with various wildlife, especially in urban areas. This excellent site helps people identify animals, suggests ways to prevent problems, provides a wildlife directory and answers many public health and safety questions. In addition, it guides users on determining whether or not they need an animal control permit as well as what to do with sick, injured or orphaned wildlife. You may visit the site at: http://livingwithwildlife.extension.uiuc.edu

We need to eat a variety of foods from all of the food groups every day. How much each person should eat varies. Use the following charts as a guide:

Women

Age - Fruits - Vegetables

31-50 - 1½ cups - 2½ cups

51+ - 1½ cups - 2 cups

Men

Age - Fruits - Vegetables

19-50 - 2 cups - 3 cups

51+ - 2 cups - 2½ cups

The eating plan tells you how many ounces of grains, cups of vegetables and fruit, cups of milk, and ounces of protein you should eat every day. For some it may seem like a lot of food, for others, it may be less than you are used to eating. Once you know how much food from each of the food groups you should be eating, you can make your meal plan.

Check out the many colors of vegetables and fruits at the grocery store.

Reds: apples, beets, cherries, grapes, peppers, potatoes, radishes, raspberries, strawberries, tomatoes and watermelon are some examples. These foods may help prevent some types of cancers and help protect the cells in our bodies.

Oranges and yellows: apples, apricots, cantaloupe, carrots, mangoes, oranges, peaches, pears, peppers, pumpkin, sweet potatoes and many others contain carotenoids that help reduce risk of cancer, heart disease, and help the immune system.

Blues and purples: blackberries, eggplant, figs, plums, grapes and raisins help protect cells from damage.

Greens: apples, asparagus, green beans, broccoli, grapes, honeydew, kiwi, peas spinach and zucchini are thought to help with diseases of the eyes.

Whites: bananas, cauliflower, jicama, mushrooms, potatoes and turnips may help in lowering blood pressure. Some of these are also good sources of potassium.

This is not a complete list of all fruits and vegetables that we can find in the store, but it is a start. Try mixing up the colors of the vegetables on your plate – it is healthy for you, can be low in calories when eaten plain, and is packed with fiber.

Just remember that you need a variety of foods every day – so why not make your plate colorful?

- Shirley Camp, U of I Extension Educator

LEMON COOKIES

1 box lemon cake mix (or any flavor)

8 oz. container cool whip

Mix together. Spoon out a teaspoon full and roll in powdered sugar. Bake at 350˚ for 10 minutes.