Kids in the Kitchen

Don't ever question the value of volunteers. Noah's Ark was built by volunteers; the Titanic was built by professionals. - Dave Gynn

As a way to build more of a network in Boston, I joined the Junior League and am involved in a program called Kids in the Kitchen (KITK). It is focused on teaching 6th grade girls at Boston Renaissance Charter School about healthy eating and exercise. I used to work with similarly aged girls in Seattle through the Bellevue Boys and Girls Club's cheer program and, for some reason, I think they are awesome at this age.

I joined the group late, so I've only been to two events. The first was a field trip to a local farm where we learned about where food comes from and were able to pick radishes that were going to be donated to a local food bank. The girls live in the city and many had never seen a farm before. They were hesitant at first, playing it cool by being disinterested, but eventually got really into it.

Picking radishes at the farm

The second event was a capstone class where we discussed what the girls had learned. Key takeaways were learning the difference between "sometimes foods" (sweets, fried food, etc) and "always food" (lean protein, dairy in moderation, fruit, veggies, etc.). The girls made poster-board collages and presented them to their parents after serving them a healthy lunch that they made. There were lots of hugs and "I'll miss you"s as the day wound down. This group of girls has graduated the KITK program and there will be a new batch of young ladies in the spring.