As a single father of three, I was the head chef in our household. My children gave me that nickname. It didn't hurt that I went to Culinary School many years ago. :)
The Corona Pandemic created unprecedented challenges for parents and educators. With schools shut down, and activities completely curtailed, parents struggled to find ways to help their children learn, engage and thrive in that environment.
During that time, I was a teaching assistant at Widener University, a PA Certified Substitute Teacher, and a culinary instructor at Lavner Summer Camps. I immediately answered parents’ needs for homeschool assistance and tutoring and began working in "Pods". While working with my students, I also discovered that everyone was struggling to find non-traditional learning activities that were Covid-safe, yet interesting and fun. My love for cooking and my culinary training led me to develop cooking and baking classes for children. And thus “Chef Dad’s Table” was born.
Our students are toddlers through adults with the average ages being 5-10.
Being able to interact with our students and transfer some of my knowledge to them is an amazing feeling. The skills we learn in our classes are pieces of information that they can use all their lives. Watching the kids build confidence in the kitchen and gain self esteem is super rewarding to our students and to me. We also offer special events such as birthday parties and workshops for the Girl and Boy Scouts...what's NOT fun about parties??
Chef Dad’s Table provides the students enrolled in our classes the opportunity to learn to be savvy consumers and acquire kitchen skills that they carry with them throughout life. We educate about food insecurity with the hope that we can help alleviate this hardship that affects so many. We partner with houses of worship and work in the community to help those who are food insecure. We do all this while making sure our classes are fun and our students enjoy themselves. Besides educating, our classes provide a warm and captivating opportunity for our students to build friendships and learn to work in teams. We have talented and knowledgeable instructors that work closely with and mentor our students. Our classes offer an inclusive opportunity for those with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). We do offer scholarships and financial arrangements and we work with various organizations to facilitate donation drives.
Learning a skill set and having the necessary knowledge helps individuals make better informed and educated decisions that will affect their life. We want to help children, teens, and adults make great decisions regarding their Food, Family, and Consumer Science choices. And let's not forget, our classes are super fun, delicious, and we get to eat all the time!!
