County marks 50th anniversary of WIC program

There was never enough food in Ebony Evans’ house growing up.

Walking the aisles of the grocery store with her mother as a young girl, she remembers the only way they could afford the staples was through a federal program known as Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children. It was a program in its infancy, but making all the difference for her family.

“I feel like I was born into WIC,” Ms. Evans said. “I remember specifically getting our milk, our cereal, our eggs, every single thing that came along with WIC. I just remember it so vividly.”

When Ms. Evans got pregnant as a teenager, she would lean on the assistance in the same way to provide for her child, ensuring she made wellness appointments and was providing the right nutrition.

As the WIC program enters its 50th year, Ms. Evans stood alongside leaders across the state and county in Wilkinsburg on Wednesday to celebrate the milestone and to reflect on the program’s impact on local families.

Since 1974, WIC has provided nutrition education, breastfeeding support, healthy foods, and service referrals to improve health outcomes for low-income families. Thanks to its early interventions, the public health program has reduced premature births, reduced fetal and infant deaths, increased immunization rates and improved nutrition for pregnant mothers.

Allegheny County itself stands as a unique piece of the program’s history, opening the second WIC office in the entire country.

“As a pediatrician, I have seen firsthand the benefits of the WIC program for children and families,” said acting Secretary of Health Dr. Debra Bogen. “I am honored to help kick off the celebration for a program that, after 50 years, continues to evolve to meet the needs of Pennsylvania women, infants, and children.”

At a lunch attended by more than 100 WIC staff, participants and partners, Allegheny County Executive Sara Innamorato said that she has a personal connection to the program. She would ask her mother why they wouldn’t use WIC or other government assistance programs when they fell on hard times financially.

Ms. Innamorato said her mother would often cite the stigma around being involved in WIC or other programs as the reason for not applying.

“We have so much more work to do to get beyond that stigma, and say, ‘These programs are for everyone,’ ” Ms. Innamorato told those gathered.

As of 2023, more than 6 million families were enrolled in WIC nationally. About 11,000 of them come from Allegheny County, which boasts the second-highest number of individuals participating in WIC in the state behind Philadelphia County. But still, not everyone who could use the help gets it.

Only half of eligible families in Allegheny County are enrolled.

To reach more communities in need, the county unveiled a mobile clinic last fall to offer WIC’s services in neighborhoods with limited transportation access. Full-time nutritionists staff and drive the mobile clinic to directly assist families.

The Allegheny County Health Department has also begun offering telehealth and translation services, and the county’s WIC clinics became fully staffed for the first time since 2018.

“[Enrollment] numbers have been rebounding recently, but events like today are so important in raising awareness and making sure families can know about the program,” Ms. Innamorato said.

Ms. Evans, owner of Farmer Girl Eb, has built a business selling produce that she grows on her urban farms in Pittsburgh’s West End and North Side. In 2021, she opened her first fresh food corner store. Customers quickly began asking if she offered WIC benefits, and she was eager to figure out how she could help families like hers.

But that came with a price. To meet WIC requirements, Ms. Evans had to expand her business hours from five days a week to six, and she needed to hire an extra staff member to do so. She also had to replace her entire point of sale system, a device that facilitates payments by customers, to another that specifically takes the WIC card.

Despite the cost burden, she was determined to make it work, and she is now just a few more steps away from becoming certified. She expects to start taking WIC by the end of the month.

“I want people to be able to walk out on foot in their community and be able to access nutritional programs,” Ms. Evans said. “It’d be great if more smaller stores, smaller businesses, would be able to offer it.”

A recent grant from the Hillman Foundation may do just that. Dannai Wilson, deputy director for community and family health in Allegheny County, said the funding will help 10 stores in the county become WIC-authorized, providing them $5,000 their first year with the option to extend into a second year if they are not able to maintain the benefits. Applications are expected to become available on Monday.

“That experience that Ebony talked about with her mom in the store, all children should be able to do that, and they shouldn’t have to travel far to do it,” Ms. Wilson said.

Steve Bohnel contributed to this report.