By Freeholder Gerry P. Little. Keeping children and their mothers healthy this holiday season, and throughout the year, is the goal of the Ocean County Women, Infants and Children Program, or WIC.

Funded by the federal government, WIC benefits more than 21,000 low-income clients each month.

The program provides supplemental nutritious foods to pregnant, breastfeeding and postpartum women, infants and children up to the age of five. WIC services include nutrition education and counseling, breastfeeding promotion and support, immunization screening and health care referrals.

The WIC program has also achieved the highest percentage of breastfeeding clients in the state of New Jersey.

Ocean County’s WIC is also the fastest growing in the state, with the Lakewood office having the third-largest client list in the state. Lakewood is also the fastest-growing nutrition site in all of New Jersey.

Other local WIC offices are located in Toms River, Brick and Stafford townships.

As Freeholder Liaison to the Ocean County Board of Health, I’m very pleased to say that our program has been recognized by the U.S. Department of Agriculture as one of the best WIC sites in the entire nation.

The USDA rated our Lakewood location as “State of the art.”

All of these programs and accolades they receive mean little unless the community takes advantage of these important services.

If you are, or you know a young mother who would benefit from WIC, please do not hesitate to reach out to the office most convenient to you.

Additional information is available at the Ocean County Health Department Website at www.ochd.org or by calling 1-800-342-9738.

Applicants must meet federal income requirements, which are detailed on the health department’s webpage.

This holiday season, what better way to care for a mother and her young children than through the services of Ocean County Women, Infants and Children Program.