Culinary Discovery Camps and Restaurant Camp

Origins:

The Institute for the Culinary Arts (ICA), which is part of the Metropolitan Community College in Omaha, NE, hosts camps each summer to allow kids to be in the kitchens and explore their love for food. The tuition for the program was increasing due to labor and food costs, so the ICA reached out to SpartanNash / Family Fare Supermarkets and asked that we partner to allow for more kids in Omaha to participate.

Contribution:

SpartanNash made a generous donation of $5,000 to the Institute of the Culinary (ICA) Arts to partly sponsor the summer culinary camps and reduce the cost for kids to attend. The donation reduced the tuition by over 50%. If SpartanNash would not have partnered with the ICA, many kids would have have been able to participate due to the monetary cost.

Objectives:

Help students understand food from farm to table while fine tuning the skills in between from using a knife to using a stove and finally serving the prepared food. Give students a creative outlet and let them explore their passion for food.

Impact:

Every summer culinary camp was filled and there were even 'wait lists'. The kids enjoyed the camps and since this year was so successful, the Institute for the Culinary Arts is already looking to next year.

Quote:

Brian O'Malley is the Executive Director of the Institute for the Culinary Arts. He said “The skills we're going to work on, in order for these students to be successful here, are going to serve them well on the soccer field, the basketball court, the classroom, the corporate suite whether they become a cook or not."

Cathy Curtis is the culinary camp coordinator and she said "thank you so very much to Family Fare [SpartanNash] for the support. Without the support, the camp would not have allowed for as many students and experiences."

Support Statement: