School kids cook for those in need.
The donors: Jill Lewis and Julie Levin
The gift: Creating Kids Cook to Care
The reason: To give children an opportunity to help people in need
A few years ago, Jill Lewis and Julie Levin were accompanying their children on a field trip to an apple orchard when they began chatting about what to do with all of the apples.
Both women had recently moved to Toronto with their families from abroad – New York in the case of Ms. Lewis and Tokyo for Ms. Levin. And their children had been used to volunteering.
Ms. Levin runs a catering business and the two women began talking about a cooking venture involving school children. That led to the creation of Kids Cook to Care in 2009. The organization brings a group of students together to cook community meals for up to 100 needy people at a time. And they get volunteer help from a high-profile chef.
So far, Kids Cook to Care has made about 7,000 meals and worked with dozens of schools around Toronto. Each meal costs about $800 and the group relies on corporate donations and contributions from volunteers to make the repast possible.
"Everyone deserves to have a decent meal at the end of the day, regardless of their economic circumstances," said Ms. Lewis, who runs a public relations firm. "The children also get a window into a different community that they normally wouldn't see."