What role does Chefs Cycle play in the success of No Kid Hungry? This episode of Add Passion and Stir takes place at Chefs Cycle 2018. Krista Anderson of New Seasons Market in Portland, OR, Hugh Mangum chef/co-owner of Mighty Quinn’s New York Barbeque and Ed Doyle of Real Food Consulting in Boston join host Billy Shore after riding 100 miles for the second day to talk about their experiences participating in Chefs Cycle. The question is raised as to why go to such great lengths to raise funds. “There’s strength in numbers and numbers are community, and the community is always going to be a we, and we is always stronger than I,” says Magnum. Anderson talks about one of her teammates who used a twitter campaign to get his company to donate a money to No Kid Hungry. “And there were some comments back ‘just write the check’. Then you don’t have that spread the word,” she observed. Billy Shore notes that Chefs Cycle brings in more first-time donors (4000 per year) than anything Share Our Strength has done because of everyone reaching out to their networks. “It is such an easy ask. I don’t think anyone that I’ve asked has said no. You explain the cause. You explain that you’re not nuts…and they happily sign up, and then again year after year,” says Doyle.

In addition to raising $2M to support No Kid Hungry, the guests discuss the challenges of the rides and the sense of community that grows out of the event. “You have the moments when you’re feeling great and moments where you’re like how the hell am I going to finish this, but the coolest thing is to see people who are avid cyclists, people who are not avid cyclists…and everyone pulls together,” says Doyle. Talking about the recent fires that ravaged Sonoma County, Anderson notes that “having to look around…and taking it all in and seeing just a fireplace and black trees was pretty sobering.” Mangum agrees but points out that riding in “the amazing community in Santa Rosa adds another sense of purpose.” He describes riding by a school where 80 kids came running out to spur on the cyclists. “That was a moment I’ll never forget.”

Get inspired by these amazing guests who tackle the incredible physical and mental challenge of Chefs Cycle to help end childhood hunger.

Resources and Mentions:

·       No Kid Hungry (nokidhungry.org): Share Our Strength’s No Kid Hungry campaign is ending child hunger in America by ensuring all children get the healthy food they need, every day.

·       Root Cause Coalition: (rootcausecoalition.org) The Root Cause Coalition is a national, member-driven, nonprofit organization dedicated to addressing the root causes of health disparities by focusing on hunger and other social determinants leading to nationwide epidemic of preventable chronic health conditions.

·       Krista Anderson is responsible for innovative planning of the prepared foods department programs, seasonal menu and recipe development, as well as purchasing and sourcing of ingredients for New Seasons Markets in the Portland, Oregon area. She focuses on stellar customer service and fiscal responsibility to support in-store merchandising, store openings and remodels, staff development as well as coaching and nurturing vendor/producer relationships. Prior to that, she was the Company Chef in charge of seasonal menu and recipe development to support established programs for all prepared foods departments including holiday and special event menus. She earned a bachelor’s degree from Bates College and associates degree from the New England Culinary Institute.

·       New Seasons Market brings delicious, healthy food from local farmers, producers, ranchers and fisherman to the communities of Portland, Oregon. They provide the best mix of local, organic favorites and grocery classics. They are firmly committed to supporting the regional food economy, environmental stewardship, giving back to the local community, and providing a progressive workplace for staff to thrive. Store by store, they focus on building and nourishing the communities they serve, creating lasting relationships with their customers, staff and vendors.

·       Hugh Mangum is the pitmaster and co-owner of Mighty Quinn’s New York barbeque. Fond memories of palate altering meals and a deep admiration for the soul of real barbeque have led Hugh on a personal quest for slow smoked perfection. Many years and copious piles of wood later, Mighty Quinnʼs New York barbeque represents Hugh's craft and his desire to make people happy eating slow smoked goodness. An avid cyclist and long-time No Kid Hungry Supporter, Magnum is veteran of Chefs Cycle.

·       Mighty Quinn’s New York Barbeque takes a simple approach: source the best quality ingredients they can and don’t fuss with them too much. They cook barbeque the old school way with plenty of wood and time, adding just the right amount of salt and spice to let that lovely marriage of process and product evolve into something transcendent. They bring together the best of all great BBQ techniques to create something uniquely its own. The process begins with the best, all-natural meats and poultry, seasoned with perfect spice blends and then smoked with wood for many, many hours until the perfect harmony of smoke, flavor and time emerges. Their food is steeped in tradition but given new life. BBQ was created in the South but Mighty Quinn's Barbeque was born in New York!

·       Ed Doyle has become a household name in the Boston hospitality scene for his work as a both chef and, now, as a consultant with RealFood Consulting, Inc. While Director of Culinary Operations at the Seaport Hotel and World Trade Center, the hotel’s restaurant Aura was named one of the Best New Restaurants in the U.S. That passion and drive are even stronger today as he helps new and existing foodservice businesses make success happen. Ed has been featured in Food and Wine, Restaurant Business, and Food Arts magazines. Away from the office, Ed works with non-profit groups to give back to the community. He gets his competitive fix from bike racing and cooking on the National BBQ Circuit as part of Team iQue, World Champions in 2009. Ed lives in Somerville, Massachusetts, with his partner Mary.

·       RealFood Consulting, Inc. is a full-service consulting firm that has attended to the needs of the food & beverage industry since 1996. They design, develop, and open new restaurants as well as fix rebuild, reassess, and rediscover exiting concepts.

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What’s at the heart of healthcare disparities in America? In this episode of Add Passion and Stir, Grantmakers In Health (GIH) President and CEO Faith Mitchell and Washington Post Food and Dining Editor Joe Yonan talk about equity, the long-term effects of stress, and healthy cooking. “The interest in what we now call equity really started in the mid-80’s,” says Mitchell about the differences in health outcomes among ethnic and racial populations. “It’s many-pronged effort at this point. You have people in healthcare settings who are trying to equalize outcomes,” she shares. Yonan emphasizes diversity in his own work in the newsroom and recently released America The Great Cookbook, proceeds from which support No Kid Hungry. “The thing I think I’m proudest of about the book is the sheer diversity of the group of people in the book. It’s all walks of life, all colors, ages,” he says. “The same diversity I went for in the cookbook, I want to show up in the food coverage of the Washington Post.”

Well-known for his writing on the intersection of food and health and the value of cooking at home, Yonan believes, “People eat healthier food if they make it for themselves.” Mitchell, whose grandfather was a West-Indian chef and caterer, notes the importance of home cooking and family meals in her own life. “These days cooking at home feels very revolutionary,” she says. In both her personal and professional lives, Mitchell believes in the importance how you treat other people on a daily basis. “So much comes down to whether…you’re bringing love to that interaction or whether you’re bringing anger or hostility or stress,” she says. Inspired, Debbie Shore closes the conversation, “I’m going to show some love today!”

Share in this wide-ranging discussion about the effects of diversity, equity and healthy eating.

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How do social change-makers work together to make greater impact? In this episode of Add Passion & Stir, host Debbie Shore talks with KaBOOM! CEO James Siegal and DC Chef Mike Friedman (Red Hen, All-Purpose) about focusing on teamwork and community to help those in need. Siegal speaks of the marginalization of many neighborhood institutions and how successful nonprofits must bring these entities together. “You can’t do it alone… It takes everyone rowing in the same direction to make change happen,” he says. Friedman sees parallels to running successful restaurants. “I fell into cooking because I love the team mentality. Restaurants are a team sport… I was enamored with the idea of being a part of something that was bigger than me,” he recalls.

KaBOOM! leverages corporate funding to strengthen communities, building more than 3000 safe playspaces across the country for kids living in disadvantaged communities. Each playground build day brings together community partners and hundreds of local volunteers for a moving community experience. “If you want to get to a place where kids are better off, you need strong communities and strong communities are cohesive, safe, and they have a sense of pride,” says Siegal. For Friedman, giving back is part of the role of being a chef, an active member of his neighborhood, and a successful business owner. “My passions lie with children’s needs,” he says, and demonstrates this by supporting organizations like Share Our Strength’s No Kid Hungry campaign and March of Dimes.

Listen to this conversation about how teamwork can build strong communities and create lasting impact.

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Who would ride their bike 300 miles in three days? Travis Flood, Jess Cerra, Stuart Brown and Tom Nelson are four out of the hundreds of chefs and members of the culinary community who do it to raise funds and awareness for No Kid Hungry. In this special episode of Add Passion and Stir, host and fellow cyclist Billy Shore talks to these four riders after the second day of the 2017 Chefs Cycle event about what motivates them to tackle both the challenge of the ride and the challenge of ending childhood hunger in the US. (The first Chefs Cycle 2018 will be May 15-17 in Santa Rosa, CA and the second will be September 25-27 in Charlottesville, VA.)

It comes down to commitment and community. Arby’s Foundation Executive Director Stuart Brown, who experienced several mechanical problems, sees a parallel between his ride and the mission to end hunger. “When you rally around a community, it happens. Even though I had all the flat tires, I made it because of the power of community,” he says. Chef Travis Flood of California’s Alexander’s Steakhouse and Pappas Artisanal not only rides in the event but has the added pressure of preparing dinner for all the riders and volunteers each night. “I have so much love and respect and care for this organization that I don’t want to fail,” he says. Personal chef and professional cyclist Jess Cerra grew up food insecure in small-town Montana. “I realized the community was really helping my mom so she could feed us…. So for me it goes beyond kids who don’t have breakfast or lunch or dinner… they realize that people believe in them,” she says. Share Our Strength President and CEO Tom Nelson values the perseverance. “It’s people coming together—chefs, corporations, elite cyclists—saying we’re not going to fail, we’re going to persevere on this ride. We’re going to persevere in ending childhood hunger in this country,” he says.

Be inspired by the dedication of four No Kid Hungry champions who persevere through a grueling physical challenge to help end childhood hunger.

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How do we unite different cultures in the midst of a polarizing political climate? In this episode of Add Passion and Stir, George Washington University professor of leadership Louis Caldera and Rose Previte, owner of Compass Rose and Maydān in Washington DC, talk about culture, leadership and the potential for diversity to drive positive change in the US. Both guests believe diversity is our greatest strength. “As long as we’re true to our principles of equality, and people can develop their talents through education and contribute something, then that’s what we need to do,” says Caldera, the son of Mexican immigrants who became Secretary of the Army. He emphasizes how our country benefits when the brightest people in the world want to come here to be educated. “The growing diversity of this country will become more politically active and they’re going to say, ‘I don’t fear people who come from places like where I come from because I’m a contributing American,’” he predicts. Previte’s restaurants are a celebration of diversity inspired by her upbringing with a Lebanese mother and Sicilian father and her own extensive travels. “The street food [at Compass Rose] is the great equalizer, it’s where everyone whether rich or poor…come together over food,” she says.

Both guests come from families where food and hospitality were focal points. Previte remembers how her diverse family educated others about they were through food. Caldera, who grew up poor in Southern California at a time when the Latino community was still small, believes shared meals are important for building strong families and communities. However, shared meals can be difficult with the work schedules in low-income families, so he advocates for supports like minimum wage, family assistance and opportunities for education.

Listen to this conversation between two leaders who understand diversity as a strength that builds positive social change.

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How can we develop systems that support good eating habits and healthy communities? In this episode of Add Passion and Stir, two passionate women describe how their organizations support community health in New Mexico, a state where 25% of children are food insecure. Leigh Caswell, Director of the Center for Community Health at Presbyterian Healthcare Services, develops community health assessments and plans. Anzia Bennett, Director of Three Sisters Kitchen in Albuquerque, developed her business to create opportunities for the community to help build and benefit from the local food system. Both focus on healthy eating, which is a particular challenge in disadvantaged communities. “We know that [making healthy choices] as people of privilege is a challenge. But when you look at [disadvantaged] communities, you can see that they’re targeted…There’s a lot less opportunity to make healthy choices,” says Caswell. The Center’s programs - including healthy food ‘prescriptions,’ summer meals and a mobile farmers market - drive healthier eating habits and contribute to healthier economies. “The question we ask is ‘what makes you feel good when you eat certain foods...what energizes you,’” says Bennett. “That becomes a really beautiful way to tap into a more mindful relationship with the food we eat.” Three Sisters Kitchen has a local food shop, café, commercial kitchen, test kitchen, community dining room and classroom to support food entrepreneurs’ development of ideas that extend the revenue-generating season for local farmers.

Caswell believes that there has to be big investment if we want to shift our food culture. She believes that federal healthcare policy needs to provide resources that allow healthcare providers to leverage their own resources like cafeterias, purchasing power, and communication channels. “Making healthy choices around food is so complex that we have to work in so many different levels of the socio-ecologic framework,” she explains. Bennett agrees that federal policy around farms subsidies needs to change to level the playing field for small growers and farmers committed to organic, biodynamic, or sustainable practices. “When we talk about healthy food, access to healthy food, and food as medicine, we’re literally talking about what that food does in our bodies, but we’re also talking about the ways food connects us to our families and our traditions,” she says.

Learn about successful models for building communities in this in-depth conversation between two talented community health practitioners.

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How can the next generation change our culture to solve social problems? In this special episode of Add Passion and Stir made possible by generous support from the Sodexo Stop Hunger Foundation, Gerri Mason Hall, Senior Vice President of Human Resources for Sodexo and Chair of the Sodexo Stop Hunger Foundation, and Derek Brown, owner of Columbia Room in Washington DC, have a lively discussion about diversity and inclusion, young leaders, culture change, and classic cocktails. Mason Hall, Brown and hosts Share Our Strength co-founders Debbie and Billy Shore believe that the fresh, uncynical passion of our youth can solve major social problems. The recent activity around gun control is a prime example. “One of the most exciting things is the fresh eyes to an approach at problem solving,” says Mason Hall, who focuses on enabling young people through Sodexo’s work and the No Kid Hungry Youth Ambassador Program. Brown is proud that he empowers his employees to protect others, working closely with Collective Action for Safe Spaces to train employees about recognizing and intervening when they see sexual harassment or violence. Billy Shore shares their hopefulness about youth changing the future. “Sometimes there’s an advantage to ‘you don’t know what you don’t know’…you don’t get discouraged, you don’t get disappointed, you think everything can change,” he says.

Both guests also value culture change. Mason Hall has spent decades building a culture of diversity and inclusion at Sodexo. “In the early 2000s, the emphasis was on representation - especially women and minorities - in the workplace… Now we’re not just focused on numbers coming in, but how inclusive is the culture,” she explains. She relishes playing the role of mentor for a younger generation and helping them turn their vision into change. “It is this diversity of thought that together will help us innovate and solve these problems,” she says. Brown is noted for creating change in how the next DC generation feels about alcohol through his emphasis on well-made culinary cocktails. “We’re really turning drinking more into a ritual…you’re not focusing on quantity, you’re focusing on quality,” he says. A historian of alcohol, he describes its place in American culture. “Our culture has a particular relationship with alcohol… and we have changed it through creating these cocktail bars that are a little different,” he believes.

Share in this informative and fun conversation between two leaders mentoring the next generation in their respective fields. 

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How can our food system empower people to choose clean, nutritious food? On this episode of Add Passion and Stir, Founder and President of the Daily Table Doug Rauch and grassroots organizer and chef Neftalí Durán discuss food justice. After a successful career as president of Trader Joe’s, Rauch launched Daily Table in the Boston area with the idea that food insecurity is a multi-faceted problem. “This is a system. There’s no silver bullet you can shoot and take care of the problem...It intersects with education, poverty, culture, and access,” he says. Durán, who is originally from Oaxaca, Mexico, agrees. “Food is political… food touches every issue... My work starts from the baseline that food is a human right,” he says. “If we start from the premise that food is a human right, we should never be dismissing people that need food,” he believes.

Both social justice champions believe in trusting people and communities. Rauch admits that before founding Daily Table he almost went forward with a “beautiful solution to the wrong problem.” Instead, he listened at dozens of focus groups and community meetings. “I learned that they already had a better understanding of nutrition than I thought. It wasn’t like I had to convince someone that they had to eat fruits and vegetables. They … wanted to be given a chance to make the right choices,” he says. “Daily Table is designed primarily around making certain that food - which is the cheapest form of health care - becomes the basis and foundation for a family’s ability to provide a healthy outcome for life,” he says. Durán believes the solution to ending hunger lies in treating people with dignity - which has become much more difficult in the current political climate. Host Billy Shore asks how we empower people and communities. “One of the best ways to empower people is to listen to them. What do you need? How can we facilitate you eating healthier? What are the issues in the community? If we’re never listening, we’re really not empowering people,” he answers.

Share in this impactful conversation about food justice, empowerment and dignity.

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How do you build true community into your business and your life? On this episode of Add Passion and Stir, Shake Shack CEO Randy Garutti and cookbook author Katie Workman (The Mom 100 and Dinner Solved!) discuss how their passion for food shaped their commitment to hospitality and community. “The bigger we get, the smaller we have to act,” says Garutti about the 164 restaurants he oversees worldwide. For Shake Shack, that means teaming up with as many local and artisanal food producers as possible and also becoming active members of their restaurants’ local communities. Workman, who has been a supporter of Share Our Strength for 25 years, believes that most people who are drawn to food as a profession are concerned with hunger. “I don’t think I would be as satisfied by what I do for a living if helping to feed hungry people wasn’t a big part of it,” she says. Garutti believes the restaurant business is a noble profession where the main responsibility is to take care of people every single day. “We start by taking care of our team first, only then can we take care of our guests and our communities, our suppliers, and ultimately the people who invest in us,” he says.

Host Billy Shore asks Garutti how he builds community spirit into the company. He responds that Shake Shack looks for people who are intellectually curious, have a good work ethic and a strong emotional intelligence. “We call those things ‘the 51% of you.’ We’ve never asked someone in an interview if they know how to make a milkshake - we’ll teach you how to do the 49% of the job that’s technical - but we can’t teach you how to be emotionally aware,” he says. Contributing to her community is also important to Workman, who serves on the Board of City Harvest in New York City. “To love what you do is probably up there with the greatest gifts that you can have. And to be able to also use that as a way to give back, make other peoples’ lives enriched in some way…you are a pretty lucky person,” she concludes.

Listen to this conversation between two long-time Share Our Strength supporters about what it means to be active members of their communities.

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How will next-generation leaders define their roles as social change makers? “We’ve got to get young people saying, ‘I want to be accountable for making change,’” says host Billy Shore during this special episode of Add Passion and Stir made possible by generous support from the Sodexo Stop Hunger Foundation. His two young guests are already making impact in their communities. Twenty-three-year-old Luz Holmes works in the mayor’s office in Hartford, CT, and learned the importance of giving back at young age despite being food insecure. “[My mother] taught me that you give when you can give. Be accountable for other people… and to make the best out of life because someone else has it way worse than us,” she relates. She served as a Share Our Strength Youth Ambassador in college as a way to address hunger in her community. Alex McCoy is chef/owner of Lucky Buns in Washington DC at the age of 31. “We should always be questioning what the status quo is, what we’re doing, and if we’re doing it the right way,” he says of his leadership style. McCoy points to important factors that are creating generational differences and opportunities for new leaders. “Our generation has more information at its disposal than there ever has been. And the world is a much smaller place than it ever has been,” he believes. He notes that the recent student reaction to the Parkland, FL school shooting is a prime example. “Previously those kids wouldn’t have had a platform to change hearts and minds,” he says.

Though only at the beginning of her career, Holmes possesses an intentional and purpose-driven attitude toward life. She frequently asks herself, “How could I better my journey? What can I do to help this one person or what can I do to impact this one situation?” Her work for the city of Hartford includes food and nutrition outreach to underserved communities. Slated to return to school in the fall to earn her master’s degree, she sees herself moving up to the state or federal level in order to have greater impact. McCoy stays motivated by going on learning journeys around the world. He relates a story about his first bite of a favorite Thai dish on his first day in Thailand. “I realized everything I know about Thai green curry is wrong…the texture, the flavor…it was a dish I thought I knew,” he recalls. This revelation would have a profound effect on his approach to food as a chef and restaurant owner. “The cooking is cooking - that’s technical. The why is the everything - It’s the emotion, it’s the heart, the soul, it’s the tradition. You need to know that so that you can fully understand the flavors the right way,” he says

Share in this conversation and understand the motivations driving two aspiring young leaders who are becoming forceful advocates for change.

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