A local children’s author is helping young students in Klamath Falls learn about healthy habits one story at a time.
Allyssa Defillipo visited kindergarten classrooms at Pelican Elementary School Wednesday to read her recently released children’s book, Why Is My Tummy Grumbling?, before returning the following day to read to first grade students after the positive response from classes and staff.
The interactive children’s book follows a young girl named Juniper as she learns how healthy foods help fuel her body and improve how she feels. Along with the story, the book includes drawing pages, matching activities and other interactive elements designed to help children engage with lessons about nutrition and wellness.
Allyssa, a well-known community advocate and former Miss City of Sunshine and Miss Klamath County participant in the Miss America scholarship organization, said the inspiration for the book came after searching for nutrition-focused books for her younger sister.
“My little sister just turned one,” Allyssa said. “We went looking for a nutrition book, and there just really wasn’t a lot for kids. So I decided to write one.”
The project took nearly eight months to complete, with Allyssa designing the illustrations and formatting the book herself.
“It wasn’t writing it that was hard,” she said. “It was figuring out how to get the physical copies made and putting everything together.”
Allyssa released a free downloadable version of the book in March before publishing the physical copy in April. Since then, she has been visiting schools throughout the Klamath Basin, including Roosevelt, Pelican, Peterson, Stearns and Malin elementary schools, sharing the story with students and encouraging conversations about healthy habits.
Her visits tie directly into her broader wellness initiative, “Eat to Live: Transforming Lives through Nutrition,” which promotes healthy eating, hydration, activity and overall well-being for children and families.
“A lot of the time, kids just don’t know about nutrition,” Allyssa said. “I think it’s important to talk about it more and make it part of their everyday lives.”
While the book discusses healthy foods, Allyssa said she intentionally avoids labeling foods as “bad.”
“I would never want kids to think, ‘That’s bad food,’” she said. “I want them to understand that some foods help our bodies feel stronger, give us energy and help us feel our best.”
Allyssa said she hopes the story encourages children to listen to their bodies and build healthy habits early in life.
“We live in a very processed world,” Allyssa said. “Just increasing whole foods like fruits, vegetables, grains and oats can make a huge difference for kids.”
The visit also gave Pelican students an opportunity to meet a real author, something Pelican kindergarten teacher Ashley Sacco said connected directly to what students are learning in class.
“We talk so much about authors and illustrators, but our students don’t usually get to meet one,” Sacco said. “So I thought, ‘How cool would it be for our kindergartners to meet a local author?’”
Sacco first learned about Allyssa’s book through Conger Elementary School paraprofessional Jenny Nunn, who found the book on social media, before reaching out and inviting her to Pelican.
“I also loved what she was promoting,” Sacco said. “Nutrition, healthy choices and wellness are such important things for kids to learn about.”
Students quickly connected with the story and activities that accompanied the reading.
“I had students saying, ‘I really want that book,’” Sacco said. “They loved the activities and were really interested in why Juniper’s tummy was grumbling.”
The author visit also connected with another literacy project already underway at Pelican Elementary. Earlier this year, Sacco’s kindergarten class published its own student-created book through a classroom publishing program.
“They were so excited to tell her, ‘We wrote our own book, too,’” Sacco said. “It was really special for them to meet someone who actually wrote and illustrated a book.”
Sacco said experiences like Allyssa’s visit help promote literacy, creativity and community connections for students.
“It promotes local authors, literacy and supporting people in our own community,” Sacco said. “It shows students that you can start here in Klamath Falls and build something meaningful.”
Allyssa said she hopes to continue expanding school visits both locally and across Oregon as interest in the book continues to grow. Allyssa said schools and classrooms as far away as Coos Bay have expressed interest in hosting a book reading.
Why Is My Tummy Grumbling? is available on Amazon, with additional details available through Allyssa Defillipo’s Linktree below.
“I would give the book away for free if I could,” Allyssa said. “I just really want to get the message out about nutrition and how much it impacts kids’ minds, bodies and overall health.”
