Volunteer Teen Chefs Cook Healthy Meals for People in Distress

Giving cancer victims or those in recovery hope and the knowledge that our community cares

By Edita McQuary

Eight young people were industriously working at a waist-high counter at the Teen Kitchen Project in Soquel late Tuesday afternoon, October 29. Nicole, Carmen and Sabrina from Delta Charter School; Calvin, Simeon, Isabel, and Andreas from Pacific Collegiate; and Geesoo from Soquel High School carefully prepared vegetables for vegetable gratin, Tom Kha soup, and kneaded refrigerated dough for turnovers.

Not even the distractions of the Dunbar Productions cameraman and a reporter onsite could disturb their cool and distract them from their work. Under the supervision of Kitchen Manager and Adult Mentor Chef, Kimber Ashley, and Alain Baud, Adult Mentor Chef, the teenagers continued zesting limes, chopping vegetables, and kneading dough according to the recipes pinned above their workstations.

Most of them take what they learn home and help prepare healthy meals for their families.

The Teen Kitchen Project is the inspiration of Angela Farley, a veteran teacher at the Santa Cruz Montessori School. It came about because her youngest son, Charlie, became ill with a rare lung cancer. Fortunately, Charlie is now stable with a good prognosis although he has to be medically followed every three months.

During the course of his treatment, Angela heard about a program in Sebastopol called “Ceres Community Project” which helps cancer patients receive proper nourishment during their recovery from cancer (or other life-threatening/debilitating illness). She made a vow to help other cancer patients and “to give them nourishing, delicious food, and to lessen the isolation they may feel when in treatment by connecting them with their community.”

Since Angela’s education is in elementary education and encompasses nourishment, she decided, along with a friend and Teen Kitchen Project Fund Development Manager, Cindy Estrada, to attend a week-long session at the “Ceres Community Project” to learn how to create an organization similar to it in Santa Cruz County. She contacted friends, Chris and Molly Ohlsen, who run a local school lunch program with the idea. Ohlsen Foods allowed them to use the kitchen free of charge until they were established. Now they are able to pay rent by the hour. A local organic farm, Live Earth Farms, pledged organic produce from the beginning. Since then, there are more than five local farms contributing, along with a monthly pantry stocking from Whole Foods Market.

Angela is the Executive Director and Program Manager.

Stephanie Forbes, a Certified Nutrition Consultant with a specialty in whole food nutrition, loves to create simple and healthy recipes from locally grown sources. Stephanie creates the menus for the week using seasonal ingredients while keeping in focus the needs of the clients and their families.

Kimber Styles Ashley loves creating healthy meals for the families, and as Kitchen Manager, ensures everything is available for the Teen Chefs to prepare the meals using mostly local, organic ingredients. Kimber also supports the Teen Chefs as an Adult Mentor Chef.

Cindy Estrada is a vegetarian chef. She has taken on the task of procuring donations of local, organic ingredients. Cindy helps keep the kitchen costs low through the procurement of donated organic ingredients, and is always looking for ways to utilize donations efficiently.

Lara Kilpatrick, an expert in marketing and nonprofit development, has taken charge of Fund Development. She works with Cindy and Angela to ensure the project stays financially solvent, and is currently putting together the first annual drive.

“Delivery Angels” Masumi Diaz, Ed Gregor, Sarah Grant, Becky Hart, Lori Menzies, Jon Winston and Eriko Yokoyama deliver the food weekly to clients in Santa Cruz County. They often develop relationships with the clients during their visits. Masumi and Eriko also assist in the kitchen every week washing dishes and sanitizing containers for the following week.

Client Liaisons Claudia Cisneros and Victoria Thranow call clients every week to check in. Prior to opening the kitchen, Angela visited the area high schools and talked to the guidance counselors about teens volunteering in the kitchen as part of the high school curriculum’s requirement for community service. They now have fifty teens on their list and use 8-10 people per shift each Tuesday. They come from Mount Madonna, Soquel High School, Aptos High School, Kirby School, Delta Charter School, Santa Cruz High School, and Pacific Collegiate School.

Referrals for food delivery come from community members and organizations such as Jacob’s Heart, WomenCare, Hospice of Santa Cruz, and Katz Cancer Resource Center. People do not have to be needy to receive food delivery; there is no income requirement. The meals provided are free for three months; after that, an affordable donation is suggested. The meals are a 2/3 plant-based whole food diet with a focus on whole grains, organic, and using minimally- processed ingredients. There is a vegetarian option.

Delivery day is Wednesday between 1:30 and 3 p.m. “Delivery Angels” deliver the food and spend time with the clients, if invited to do so. Deliveries include three main dishes, a side dish, soup, and dessert. This usually will tide the people over until Saturday or Sunday.

Currently they have twenty clients. The food is carefully packed into a container and a cloth shopping bag along with a note from the Teen Chef and a posy of flowers. Sometimes the note says, “Anything is possible.” The “Delivery Angels” love seeing the clients’ joyous reactions.

Cancer can be an isolating illness and sometimes recovering patients do not have family nearby to rely on. The Teen Kitchen Project shows them that that they are part of a community which cares about them. At the end of each Tuesday’s session, the group gathers together, looks at photos of clients and reads “Thank You” notes. And as, Andrea says, “We believe young people are compassionate, capable, and trustworthy members of our community who have something to contribute. We like giving them the opportunity to serve and grow in a meaningful way. This program is rewarding on so many levels for all involved.”

Teen Kitchen Project will be cooking together on Christmas Eve so that clients can continue to receive healthy meals on Christmas Day.

How you can help: Teen Kitchen Project is a 100% volunteer-run organization that is entirely dependent on donations from generous donors. It is a non-profit organization so donations are tax-deductible. Checks made out to Teen Kitchen Project can be mailed to P.O. Box 1853, Soquel, CA 95073.

See the website at www.TeenKitchenProject.org for information on how to get involved as a “Delivery Angel,” Kitchen Support, or Teen Chef!

Thanks go to Angela Farley and the Teen Kitchen Project crew for help with this article.