March 2007 Trip

Allison L. joined us for our March 2007 trip to New Orleans. The youngest of our crew, she was wise well beyond her years and amazingly adept at the pastry arts (she is a recent graduate of the CIA). Her prose, Doing Good With Good Food, is a wonderful encapsulation of the people, the food and the community service Cheap NFL Jerseys that filled the week. We couldn’t have written it better ourselves.

The site has been quiet these past few months but certainly not for lack of things to write about. This summer has proven to be quite a watershed experience for cheap oakley sunglasses CulinaryCorps and we are happy to finally find the time to report on it.

In July, we traveled to Napa Valley to speak at this year’s TASTE 3 conference, Robert Mondavi’s summit at the intersection of food, wine and art. Sharing the vision of Culanthropy and the mission of CulinaryCorps with an audience of food and wine experts was both heart-warming and inspiring. For those of you not familiar with the conference, it is safe to say it is the best kept secret of the food/wine world. Run beautifully and efficiently, the three-day event affords participants experiences like no other. The setting alone, COPIA , is worthy of a trip. After the talk, we were overwhelmed as person after person came up to us with a smile, hugged us tightly and said “thank you”. A few days later we were delighted to be on the front page of the Napa Valley Register.

Next, we were invited to speak on Voluntourism.org, a website founded by David Clemmons that helps travelers find a way to give back while exploring their destinations. Our hour-long webcast had us discussing New Orleans, our unique model of engagement and the challenges we face as as an organization that hosts chefs that are both visitors and volunteers.

And lastly, we were delighted to be interviewed by The William & Mary Alumni Magazine. Our alma mater in Williamsburg, VA and where we first got our start cooking albeit for very social reasons; to win the hearts of our freshman hall mates with fresh blueberry muffins.

It has been amazing to watch CulinaryCorps alumni continue to make strides long-after they have returned home from their trip.

March participants and long-time Manhattan residents, Angela S. and April N., have recently moved to New Orleans after falling hard for the magical city during their CulinaryCorps tenure. April recently nabbed a position working with NOLA Edible Schoolyard while Angela will be reporting each day to Emeril’s Homebase as the newest edition to their test kitchen team. By weaving themselves into the fabric of the community, they hope to become an integral part of the city’s rebirth. We wish them luck and look forward to catching up over Sazeracs in September.

Another March participant, Amy T., has proved that good will can be executed from afar as her recent fundraising effort in Coshocton, Ohio raised $475 for Emergency Communities. She successfully converted the bake sale donations into gift certificates to The Cresecent City Farmers Market, allowing EC to fill their larder with farm fresh foods as well as support an important aspect of their local economy. Special thanks to Auer Ace Hardware, The Coshocton Brown’s Backers and all the generous bakers who donated their time and goods.

It has been said that ideas are many but http://www.oakleyonorder.com/ execution is precious. These three amazing cooks have proven that when your heart backs your actions, good things will follow. Thanks to Angela, April and Amy for their commitment to CulinaryCorps, and more importantly, their tremendous dedication to New Orleans.

We just arrived in NOLA today and found this lovely article waiting on the front page of the Living Section.

Many thanks to Judy Walker for taking cheap oakley the time to get to know us during the March trip. We intend to live up to every word this second time around!

To help launch the inaugural trip, CulinaryCorps received funding from Cyworld (an on-line social networking platform) through their Community Grant Challenge initiative.

Along with the grant, they also sent a video team to film our first day of service at the bountiful Crescent City Farmers Market. Thanks Cyworld!

To view, click HERE.

We have been honored with the request to post our March trip recollections on Share Our Strength’s new social justice networking website, Sharing Witness.

“Our mission at Sharing Witness is to provide a platform to share substantive insights and practical experiences that many people don’t have the opportunity to see, and that aren’t often discussed in the mainstream press.”

If you visit, be sure to leave a comment.  We’d love to hear your take!

Regina Schrambling (of Gastropoda fame) wrote a piece in the LA Times recently that gave a brief mention to CulinaryCorps.  Can you find the nod amidst all the other amazing alternative culinary careers?

A big congratulations to inaugural participant Amy T. for making headlines.  And a big thank you for her help in putting CulinaryCorps in the Coshocton spotlight!