Food shelf offers up a side of confidence

December 13, 2009

By Lynn Monty
Free Press Staff Writer

Single mom Kendra Payea was unemployed, living in a shelter and deeply dependent on state assistance last year when she was recruited to join a culinary training program at The Chittenden Emergency Food Shelf.

She now is a kitchen supervisor cooking for up to 600 people at a time at Colchester's Camp Johnson and elsewhere.

In January, Payea, 24, of Winooski entered into a pilot program called "Community Kitchen" through Reach Up, a state welfare program administered by the Vermont Department for Children and Families. When she signed up for the 14-week culinary course, she found out the food shelf does more than fill empty bellies each day.

"Through the program, I learned a lot of patience and how to work with others," Payea said. "There are a lot of things, other than cooking, that come out of the class. Because of the program, I have actually worked myself off of Reach Up. I no longer receive state assistance, and I'm doing pretty good."

Payea and her child were living at the Committee on Temporary Shelter for about six months and stayed there during her Community Kitchen training. "Going to class every day lifted my spirits, and it wasn't just about class. My teachers were there for me and helped me to get back on my feet," she said.

The local Community Kitchen is one of 20 organized by food banks nationwide designed to address the problem of ongoing unemployment, poverty and hunger. There have been 15 Community Kitchen graduates at The Chittenden Emergency Food Shelf so far, and an additional 10 are scheduled to graduate this month. Ninety-three percent of the graduates are employed.

"Partnering with the food shelf on this is a win-win situation," said Chris Meehan of the Vermont Foodbank. "We rescue food that would otherwise be wasted and use that food to train people to get jobs. It all comes full circle. The food shelf is really trying to go beyond just feeding people. They are providing opportunities to folks."

In a recent report, the U.S. Department of Agriculture ranked Vermont the sixth hungriest state in the country. In 2008, 12 percent of Vermont households struggled to get enough food on the table, and one in 20 Vermonters was "severely hungry," according to the report.

The Chittenden Emergency Food Shelf, the largest direct-service emergency food provider in Vermont, is seeing increased demand. The nonprofit serves about 12,000 people annually.

"We have seen about 1,000 more people than last year," said Rob Meehan, food shelf director. "We are working hard at meeting the rising need. We are trying to expand what we can do, so we are becoming sort of an anomaly, because we offer a variety of services."

The food shelf's annual budget is $815,000, and relies on donations from individuals, faith groups, businesses and other organi- zations. It also receives grants from The United Way, local municipalities and foundations.

"It goes deeper than just putting a Band-Aid on the problem of hunger in our area," Meehan said. "We are trying to look at the root causes and create opportunities for people to break the cycle."

Community Kitchen students rescue and prepare food for the community that would otherwise go to waste, chef instructor Brian Dermody said. "Give one person a whole turkey and they might not have the ability to cook it, but we can take that turkey and feed three families with it."

Community Kitchen is in its third session and has produced more than 8,500 meals through the food shelf, Soup Kitchen and other community agencies.

The food shelf's kitchen recently has been renovated to be better suited for teaching and production, so students can be taught large-scale food service, such as on a college campus, at a hospital or on a military base, where Payea works.

"It makes more sense, because a lot of our students are parents and can't work restaurant hours," Dermody said. "Single moms can't work until 11 at night. Opportunities for advancement are better, and there are larger arenas to play in, and it's better pay."

Students learn professional meal-preparation skills and are graded on attitude, attendance and technical abilities.

Dermody said he saw Payea's confidence grow through Community Kitchen.

"Being in the program made her more aware of her own abilities," he said. "There's no stopping her now. All we did was show her the way, and away she went. I am so proud of Kendra."

December 13, 2009

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