Emeril Lagasse Foundation and Food for Thought Launch Full Circle Kitchen Program
SANTA ROSA BEACH, Fla. – Supported by a three-year $125,000 grant from the Emeril Lagasse Foundation, Food for Thought is launching the Full Circle Kitchen program to expand service and commitment to food insecure children and their families in Okaloosa and Walton Counties.
Offered to high school students enrolled in Food for Thought, the Full Circle Kitchen Program will bring students into Food for Thought’s Santa Rosa Beach Pantry where they will learn fundamental cooking skills from restaurant partners and local chefs.
The Full Circle Kitchen program will provide a fully functional teaching kitchen with basic cooking equipment and a safe learning environment to acquire the skills necessary to prepare a meal. Students will build upon the skills they learned the week before in classes designed around limited budgets and access to food.
“By providing life skills, education, and job placement opportunities, we will have seen these children from Kindergarten through graduation and ensured they have the skills to thrive and making a lasting impact on our community,” says Food For Thought Founder and Executive Director Tiffanie Nelson.
The grant from the Emeril Lagasse Foundation will support capital needs, operating expenses and programming efforts associated with the program’s newly constructed teaching kitchen.
For more information about Food for Thought, visit www.fftfl.org. More information about the Emeril Lagasse Foundation is available at www.emeril.org.
About Emeril Lagasse Foundation:
Founded in 2002 by Chef Emeril Lagasse and his wife Alden, Emeril Lagasse Foundation is a 501c(3) public charity headquartered in New Orleans. The Foundation’s mission is to create opportunities to inspire, mentor and enable youth to reach their full potential through culinary, nutrition and arts education with a focus on life skills development. Since its inception, Emeril Lagasse Foundation has granted more than $8 million to several children’s charities to support culinary, nutrition and arts programs. The Foundation was recognized as the 2016 Nonprofit of the Year by Louisiana Association of Non-Profit Organizations. To learn more about the Foundation and its beneficiaries, visit Emeril.org, or follow us on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.
About Food for Thought:
Food For Thought is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization based in Santa Rosa Beach, FL that provides backpacks filled with healthy, easy to prepare food for students who are dependent on free or reduced school meals. Our goal is to support a child’s development and educational experience by bridging the gap between school meals during weekends and holiday breaks. Food For Thought has been working to fight child hunger since 2010, and currently serves 30 schools in Walton and Okaloosa Counties, providing backpacks for 2,800 students each week. For more information, such as donation locations, pantry items needed, and opportunities to volunteer, please email info@fftfl.org.
