2014 review - LA Kitchen

LAYING THE FOUNDATION
2014 ENd of Year Review
L.A. Kitchen believes that neither food nor people should ever go to waste.
By reclaiming healthy, local food that would otherwise be discarded, training
men and women who are unemployed for jobs, and providing healthy meals
to fellow citizens, L.A. Kitchen empowers, nourishes, and engages the
community.
As we near the end of a transformative year, and roar into a new one, we’d like to reflect on the many
accomplishments of our board, staff, and volunteers. From chefs and hospitality partners, to fellow nonprofit
groups dedicated to empowerment and independence, to amazing local philanthropists excited by our vision,
2014 was a year for building strong partnerships, and working together with audacity, purpose, and vision.
L.A. Kitchen’s 15-week culinary job training program took center stage. After developing our own curriculum,
which focuses on providing students with culinary skills, health science knowledge, and nutrition education, we
launched pilot programs to test an intergenerational model of empowerment. We are already seeing powerful
evidence that this model will soar in 2015. With three weeks left until the second cohort graduates, 100% of the
class passed the ServSafe Food Handlers test, and 25% have been offered full-time employed at their internship
sites.
With a solid team of professionals guiding the process, we are amazed by the energy and excitement the L.A.
Kitchen has unleashed. Nowhere is that more visible than with the men and women who volunteer alongside
students to process fresh fruits and vegetables every week. Since we started partnering with St Vincent Meals on
Wheels in June, volunteers have contributed over 1,000 hours of service, ensuring that homebound older adults
have access to fresh, wholesome produce.
With your support, in early 2015, L.A. Kitchen will move into a new 20,000 sq ft kitchen facility, where we will work
directly with farmers and wholesale companies to collect fruits and vegetables that are cosmetically unsalable,
transforming them into healthy meals, snacks, and food products for social service agencies across Los Angeles.
We will expand Strong Food, an innovative, social enterprise food service business that will actively pursue
foodservice contracts to provide healthy meals and wholesale products for senior service agencies, hospitals,
schools, and retail outlets throughout Los Angeles. Our goal is for Strong Food to employ dozens of training
program graduates, and generate $10 million in annual revenue within the next five years.
There’s an old saying, “L.A is where the future comes to happen.” We’re going to prove it.
Thanks to your support, we are off to an exciting start. I hope you’ll accept my personal invitation to join us in our
new home in 2015. We’re going to use every square inch of it to inspire, challenge, strengthen and excite Los
Angeles.
Sincerely,
Robert Egger
President
“There is an old saying; ‘L.A. is
where the future comes to happen,’ “ Mr. Egger said. “I’m going
to prove it.”
-Chronicle of Philanthropy
L.A. Kitchen is renovating a 20,000 square-foot
warehouse space in Lincoln Heights that will
open in Spring 2015.
JANUARY
• In 2013, empowered by a visionary $1 million start-up grant from the AARP Foundation, L.A. Kitchen formed a founding board and hired
the staff necessary to begin developing programs and partnerships to realize it’s ambitious plans.
• L.A. Kitchen formed a critical partnership with L.A. Prep, a new business incubator that was seeking to renovate a 60,000 sq ft warehouse
into wholesale production kitchens for up-and-coming food entrepreneurs.
• Consulting with chefs and experts across the country, and building on the groundwork laid by DC Central Kitchen, L.A. Kitchen developed
and published its own culinary job training and life skills curriculum that is focused on culinary skills, fresh produce, nutrition, and social
activism.
FEBRUARY
• L.A. Kitchen’s Board of Directors added Rudy Espinoza to their membership. Rudy is the Executive Director of LURN, a nonprofit organization
committed to revitalizing low-income communities.
• In partnership with the AARP Foundation, L.A. Kitchen benefitted from the 13th Annual Movies for Grownups Awards Gala in Beverly Hills.
Robert Egger also spoke during the event, which celebrated films released in 2013 that have a distinct relevance to the 50-plus audience.
• Robert Egger was elected to the Leadership Board of the Los Angeles Food Policy Council, an organization created in January 2011 by Mayor
Antonio Villaraigosa to advance the mission of building a Good Food system for all of Los Angeles.
MARCH
• Escrow closed on L.A. Prep’s building in Lincoln Heights. As the facility’s anchor tenant, L.A. Kitchen pre-leased approximately 20,000
square-feet, and worked closely with SAA Architects to design a multi-level regulation-compliant food production space.
• Robert Egger was honored as a REAL Food Innovator at the United States Healthful Food Council’s 2014 REAL Food Innovator Awards.
APRIL
• L.A. Kitchen began developing a pilot program in partnership with St. Vincent Meals on Wheels, the largest private Meals on Wheels
organization in the country, designed to test and hone its program model and curriculum.
• L.A. Kitchen’s Board of Directors added Zaid Gayle and Lisa Marsh Ryerson to their membership. Zaid is the Executive Director of Peace4Kids,
a nonprofit that provides programs and services for foster and at-risk youth from ages 5-18, and after they transition to adulthood until age
24. Lisa is the President of AARP Foundation, AARP’s affiliated charity.
• L.A. Kitchen and L.A. Prep received multiple mentions in the press, including articles by the L.A. Times and KCET.
MAY
• L.A. Kitchen threw a “Demo/Cation” event to celebrate the beginning of initial renovations at L.A. Prep, the organization’s future home. Over
300 public officials, supporters, and neighbors came together to mark the launch of the L.A. Kitchen and L.A. Prep in Lincoln Heights.
• L.A. Kitchen’s culinary job training program recruited students from partner social service agencies that provide supportive wrap-around
services, focusing on programs that serve older adults returning from prison and youth aging out of foster care. In 2014, L.A. Kitchen accepted
students from organizations across Los Angeles, including Downtown Women’s Center, Skid Row Housing Trust, The Alliance for Children’s
Rights, Dream Center, InsideOUT Writers, Hillsides, New Opportunities Charter School, The Right Way Foundation, and The Teen Project.
• NBC News’ Maria Shriver Project featured an article on L.A. Kitchen.
Sister Alice Marie Quinn of St. Vincent
Meals on Wheel inspiring the first
class of culinary job trainees.
JUNE
• With its permanent home under construction, L.A. Kitchen’s culinary arts and nutrition advocacy training program launched at St. Vincent
Meals on Wheels. In exchange for use of St. Vincent Meals on Wheels’ kitchen, L.A. Kitchen provides St. Vincent Meals on Wheels with healthy,
freshly chopped produce for use in the 4,000+ meals they deliver each day, saving an estimated $50,000 over the course of the pilot. The pilot
program is funded by a generous grant from The California Wellness Foundation.
• With the launch of the pilot program, L.A. Kitchen also inaugurated regular Saturday volunteer shifts to prepare fresh produce for St. Vincent
Meals on Wheels. Culinary job trainees help conduct volunteer orientation at the beginning of each shift, explaining kitchen procedure and
the nutritional qualities of the foods being handled that day. This gives students an opportunity to share their knowledge and build confidence.
• NBC Los Angeles did a segment on the first pilot class.
“I had a wonderful time
volunteering, as I expected!!
I cannot wait for the Lincoln
Heights building to be ready
so that the volunteers can do
more and stay longer! ”
-Response to anonymous volunteer survey
JULY
• L.A. Kitchen’s social enterprise, Strong Food, secured its first senior meal contract with Affordable Living for the Aging Senior Housing. The
first meal was Herbed Chicken Breast with Braised Collard Greens and Lemon Brown Rice. Strong Food will expand in 2015, and contract with
city agencies, food service businesses, and nonprofit organizations to prepare locally sourced, ethnically diverse meals and food products for
older adults.
• Culinary job trainees and staff held two cooking demos at St. Barnabas Senior Services, which focused on how to prepare healthy, simple
meals on a budget. L.A Kitchen is focused on the nutritional needs of older adults, particularly the 70+ million Baby Boomers that will place
immense economic strain on organizations that support older adults. In Los Angeles, the number of men and women over 65 will double over
the next 15 years.
• Guest chefs and lecturers visited the culinary job training program to share their skills and expertise, including Chef Justin Chao of Le Bon
Garcon, Clemence Gossett of Gourmandise School of Sweets & Savories, Laurie Dill from Your Local Hive, Chef Tracy Kontos, and Chef
Massimo Navaretta of The Violence Research Foundation.
AUGUST
• The women of L.A. Kitchen’s first pilot class, Shirley, Jasmine, Lucrezia and Theresa, led a cooking demo at Downtown Women’s Center,
preparing salmon and cauliflower couscous while teaching good nutrition and advocacy for food access.
• Culinary job training students did two-week internships at some of LA’s best restaurants and nonprofits to gain hands-on experience in a
professional setting. Students of L.A. Kitchen’s first pilot class interned at The Bazaar by José Andrés, Eveleigh, Groundwork Coffee Company,
Craft Los Angeles, and Project Angel Food.
Sharlene Romero interned with Chef Na Young Ma at Proof Bakery.
SEPTEMBER
• The L.A. Kitchen celebrated the graduation of its first pilot class at St. Vincent Meals on Wheels.
• L.A. Kitchen hired its first alumnus, Theresa Farthing (pictured below), to prepare food for its first senior meal contract. L.A. Kitchen and
its social enterprise, Strong Food, will offer employment opportunites that provide living wages and benefits to graduates of L.A. Kitchen’s
culinary job training program to ensure they won’t slip back into the cycle of poverty.
OCTOBER
• Applying the lessons learned during the first pilot class, L.A. Kitchen launched its second pilot class at St. Vincent Meals on Wheels.
Several new partnerships were developed to increase support for the culinary job trainees, including one with Children’s Bureau and LIFT
that provided trainees with five weeks of financial literacy training.
• Volunteers continued to help prepare fresh produce for St. Vincent Meals on Wheels every Saturday. Volunteers donated more than 1,000
hours to the program in 2014.
• Councilman Gilbert Cedillo and the Los Angeles Food Policy Council honored Theresa Farthing, L.A. Kitchen’s first alumni employee, as a
Good Food Champion at Los Angeles Food Day.
• Robert Egger participated in the first Feeding the 5000 in the United States, a one day event in Oakland that created 5,000 meals using
quality fresh food that would have otherwise been thrown away before it hit store shelves.
NOVEMBER
• Robert Egger was a keynote speaker at the Seedstock Sustainable Agriculture Innovation Conference, which focused on the economic,
environmental and community benefits that result from the development of a robust local food infrastructure. The conference included a
field trip to L.A. Kitchen’s future facility in Lincoln Heights that was featured in the L.A. Times.
• L.A. Kitchen launched MY[L.A.]KITCHEN, an online individual giving campaign to fund a full class of 26 culinary job training students in
2015.
• Chef Samuel Monsour and The Future of Junk Food hosted a pop-up dinner that raised funds to sponsor a culinary job trainee in 2015.
Starry Kitchen, Komodo, The Church Key, Rustic Canyon Wine Bar and Seasonal Kitchen, Marcel Vigneron and Huckleberry all contributed
dishes to the evening.
• Based on the experience with the first pilot class, the culinary job training program extended internships from two-weeks to four-weeks.
Culinary job trainees from the second pilot class began four-week internships at Heirloom LA, Proof Bakery, MEND Poverty, Bazaar by
José Andrés, MAKE Santa Monica, Post & Beam, and St. Vincent Meals on Wheels.
• L.A. Kitchen co-sponsored a screening of Food Chains with the Food Chain Worker’s Alliance
DECEMBER
• Initial construction of L.A. Kitchen’s space officially begins. During the first year of operating in this new facility, L.A. Kitchen expects to reclaim 1,000,000 pounds of produce, train 100 individuals in the culinary arts, recruit 10,000 volunteers, and produce and distribute 990,000
meals, snacks, and wholesale products to social service agencies, senior centers, after-school programs, and drug treatment facilities.
• Yuca’s Restaurants hosted the first annual Empty Bowls Project, with all proceeds benefitting L.A. Kitchen. For $25, guests choose from over
200 unique handcrafted bowls, and then filled their bowl with tastings from 14 area restaurants.
• An article about L.A. Kitchen appeared in the Chronicle of Philanthropy, and KCET’s SoCal Connected did a segment on the culinary job training program.
• The second culinary job training class will graduate in January 2015. As of December 2014, a quarter of the second pilot’s class were already
hired.
“Thanks to my training, I know
that if I continue to work hard,
things will fall into place.”
-Marlene Adderison, Culinary Job Trainee
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
José Andrés, Board Chair
Chef/Owner, ThinkFoodGroup
Robert Egger
President and CEO, L.A. Kitchen
Rudy Espinoza
Executive Director, Leadership for Urban Renewal Network
Zaid Gayle
Executive Director, Peace4Kids
Cecily Jackson-Zapata, Treasurer & Secretary
Founding Partner, Sustainable Law Group, P.C.
Erik Oberholtzer
Co-founder, Tender Greens
Nancy Ozeas
Director of Programs, The Milken Institute
Lisa Marsh Ryerson
President, AARP Foundation
Barton Seaver
Fellow, Explorer Program at the National Geographic Society
Arlin Wasserman
Partner, Changing Tastes Consulting Group
MAJOR FUNDERS
AARP Foundation
Ameriprise
The California Wellness Foundation
CoBank
Doheny Foundation
VALUES
Neither food nor people should ever go to waste. We recognize the potential of the community’s existing resources and are dedicated to
revealing their power to nourish and uplift.
All people have potential, and every person has a role in strengthening the community. We will engage all volunteers, staff, and students in
meaningful, impactful work.
Hunger isn’t about food. We will work to address the root causes of poverty, employing a variety of dynamic approaches to nourish the community.
Programs should empower individuals and inspire independence. We will only partner with organizations that share these values, providing
them with nutritious meals to help achieve their mission, strengthen their clients, and uplift the community.
Our impact will not be measured in pounds moved or meals served. We will employ nuanced metrics to provoke deeper dialogue about food,
hunger and poverty.
Wealth derived from the community should be reinvested locally. We use our resources to strengthen the local economy and invest in the
future of our employees.
We will not apply shallow overhead practices. We will challenge status quo, providing all employees a living wage and opportunities to invest
in their future retirement.
Investments should be made in both the present and the future. We will promote intergenerational programming that empowers all individuals,
young and old alike.
Action should be paired with advocacy. We will use our resources to educate and promote policy ideas that elevate issues and mitigate future
need.
Transparency is an essential part of improving programs. We will operate and make decisions in full view of the community we serve.
Smart solutions should be shared. We will be open-source, sharing our model and welcoming all visitors.
e: [email protected]
w: lakitchen.org
tw: @thelakitchen
fb: /thelakitchen