Last week I had the chance to have lunch with a group of Computers 4 Kids campers during their field trip to the PB & J Fund kitchen. The PB & J Fund is an organization that works to teach youth about healthy cooking and nutrition in its downtown kitchen and gathering space. They work with community partners to offer cooking classes to organizations like the Boys and Girls Clubs, Big Brothers Big Sisters, and the local schools. (Learn all about their programs and mission here.)
They have an amazing kitchen stocked with cool kitchenware in different colors and shapes to make cooking as fun as possible.
Emily, the executive director, and Courtenay, the chef and culinary educator, invited me to speak about blogging to the Computers 4 Kids campers as they enjoyed the lunch they had prepared. I shared my blogging story and a little about what goes on behind the scenes of writing a blog. The group asked some good questions!
On the menu was an adapted version of this Cucumber and Carrot Vermicelli from Bon Appétit, served with roast chicken. It was delicious!
I couldn’t share any pictures of the campers, but I enjoyed meeting them all. It was a fun field trip for me too : )
What an amazing and important mission!
Ah I teach a kids cooking class on Fridays at the community centers it is tons of fun! This looks a bit more intense maybe I need to step up my game!
Love this idea and admire you for volunteering but the organization’s name is TERRIBLE for kids with peanut and tree nut allergies (like my son). I really wish that schools, party venues, etc, would be more inclusive of kids with allergies. I know its impossible to cover every scenario but there is a big difference between a kid who wont eat a certain food or has a particular philosophy towards food like vegetarianism, etc. and a child who CANT eat a food without the risk of becoming ill or dying. I realize you in no way were involved in the naming of the organization and my purpose in making this comment is to bring awareness to food allergies and how innocently glib and exclusionary some well-meaning people and organizations can be. Thanks for allowing me to rant on my soapbox. 🙂
If you look into the organization, you’ll find that this is the reason for the name: “The name came about because we believe that a healthy diet should be easily accessible to all kids, just like the most famous and basic childhood food of peanut butter and jelly.” While that particular sandwich isn’t an option for your child, I’m pretty sure you can grasp the intent behind the name and mission, and understand that they’re not actually just handing out peanut butter sandwiches.
Also, it should be noted that the name is simply that and is not intended to exclude individuals with an allergy. It’s amazing how sensitive the nation has become as a whole. If it were called, “Mac ‘n Cheese”, then perhaps a person with Celiac Disease or one who chooses to follow a vegan diet would be excluded. This could go on and on. It’s silly.
You mean your son can’t even read a SIGN with the word peanut in it?? Or are you trolling? Must be trolling.
Hi Kath, I am a very long time reader and big fan. I just want you to know this because I know you care about your content and your readers.
This post felt severely lacking for the subject matter. It was jarringly short with hardly any details, especially in light of the type of amazing organization you were writing about. I wish you had included a little more detail about any of it – what types of questions the kids asked, more about the type of community the organization serves, nutrition issues in your community, how we can help if we are local. Your privilege to speak and observe there is a huge teaching opportunity. Your personal comments were so vague and sparse.
I hope you understand this is not “hate” or criticism, just a reader telling you that this is a great type of content we’d likely be interested in, had it been slightly more fleshed out. Hope you’re well.
I agree with Nancy. What a privilege for you to work with what sounds like a great organization. What did you talk about? What did the kids want to hear? I’d love to know more about Emily and Courtney, and how they got involved with the organization, what exactly they do. As an RD, what did you think about their approach to teaching kids about food? Did you learn anything from them? To be honest, I’m a bit floored that you didn’t make more of this post. It’s a really interesting topic!
Sounds like a great organization! The food looks great too!
That is such a cool organization and mission! The food looks delicious and certainly better than anything I could have done at their age.
Hi Kath, this sounds like a really cool organization and you have the perfect skill set to be a valuable contributor. Will you be working with them again in the future? It’d be cool to hear about any up coming projects.
Yes, I was scheduled to do an oatmeal class last year that got snowed out, so that might be back on the table soon.
What a great organization! I wish our schools could do more of this. My two young kids love helping me cook. The more we get kids in the kitchen the more healthful foods they will eat, and the better prepared they will be to cook for themselves in the future and not rely on processed foods.
What a neat idea! I love programs that get kids cooking – it’s such a fundamental skill for a healthy lifestyle and a sustainable financial future. I hope you get to work with them more in the future! 🙂
I really hope others begin to take notice of these initiatives as they are so important. I got so excited to see all the measuring cups on the wall 🙂
Amy | http://www.yankified.com
I hear you but politely disagree. Until I had a child with a life or death allergy I thought it was all an overreaction too.