May 14th, 2017
Community Skillshare Kitchen brings community and food together
Community Skillshare Kitchen brings community and food together
This past Spring, Extend-A-Family Waterloo Region reached out to a local chef to collaborate on a Community Skillshare Kitchen.
All over the world, memories are made through time spent together in kitchens, and by enjoying the fruits of the labour of cooking. Growing out of the idea that food and culture weave a common thread, the Community Skillshare Kitchen was an opportunity to build community among newcomers to Waterloo Region, through food.
Our Newcomer Resource Coach, who supports newcomer families living with developmental disabilities, found that the families she was serving had a many skills, gifts and talents that they could share with their neighbours. One such skill: food.
Recognizing that newcomers are often challenged by new foods and styles of cuisine native to their new country, the Newcomer Resource Coach caught this opportunity. The Community Skillshare Kitchen was created, to provide space and provisions for community members to learn useful and relevant tips, and to prepare popular local dishes with ease. The end goal was to see families receive the benefits of shared knowledge, healthy eating habits, and to build relationships with their neighbours in their new community.
Working together with local business owner, and Red Seal chef Allison Mitchell (of the Busy Locavore), this community driven program was an amazing way to share knowledge, skills, all while highlighting healthy and affordable ingredients for family cooking.
The skillshare portion of the program is what made the Community Skillshare Kitchen truly unique. The last two weeks of the program flipped the classroom dynamic, giving way to those participating, to share their talents with food. The students became the teacher, creating a richness of skills, talents and food amongst all.
Throughout the program, it was wonderful to see connections being made, stories being shared, and friendships truly blossoming. The course was a resounding success. It’s casual, informative and welcoming atmosphere afforded participants the opportunity to really engage and feel that they were a valued and meaningful member of the Community Skillshare Kitchen.
Read the article from The Record here.
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