- Time together uninterrupted by other people or phones
- Improving confidence through learning new skills
- Encouraging adults and children to try new foods and activities increases their willingness to try other things together that they wouldn’t usually
- Bringing in hard-to-reach people. For example, schools have told us that some parents who have attended our courses with their children have not previously engaged in other ways
- Increasing family cohesion
- Better behaviour and study results from better-fed children
- Teaching children practical fine motor and numeracy skills
Meet Jennie
Tell us about yourself
My name is Jennie Moore, I live in Bedford and I’m a mum to 18-year-old triplets (yes it is hard) but wonderful too! My background is in HR, Operations, Training & Recruitment but I am currently taking some time out of the corporate world to renovate a lovely old house. It is not without it’s challenges but I’m loving learning something new every day. Please connect on Linkedin to find out more about me.
Why did you decide to volunteer for Food Etc.
I’ve always had a passion for food and cooking from scratch is something my family and I love to do. I also enjoy fitness and so healthy eating goes hand in hand with that, especially with 3 very active, sporty children who always seem to be hungry! When I came across Food Etc it seemed a great way to share my own passion and inspire others. I’m always crazy busy, but I really wanted to give a few hours a week to something that could really make a difference. This seemed the perfect opportunity.
What’s your favourite thing about Food etc?
I love watching the change in the children as we progress through the course. The confidence they gain not just in their cookery skills but also talking to each other, reading recipes, trying things at home is magical. If that’s just in 6 weeks, imagine the long term effect this is going to have on them.
What have been your greatest challenges?
The resources we have available in some of the schools are very limited so you need to be creative with how you approach things. Having one hob between 10 attendees in one school means there is a lot of turn taking and one day even the oven didn’t work! It needed some quick thinking to alter the recipe so we could still make something together – but we did it!
What would you say to someone considering volunteering with Food etc?
Go for it! It’s not only rewarding but also incredibly fun. You can be creative, really think outside the box if that’s what you like to do and put your own spin on things. Teaching these basic skills actually has the power to change lives and it’s not very often you get the chance to do that.
What’s your healthy go to meal?
Mine is a stir fry. I love how many different veg you can squeeze in no matter what you have in the fridge and it always tastes great (lots of garlic is the key I think). My kids would say Hidden Veg pasta sauce (carrots, courgette, onions, celery, garlic, herbs & peppers blended with tomatoes). It takes minutes and I always have some in the fridge ready for those ‘starving’ teens!
Benefits of working with Food etc
Help Food Etc
Donate to Food Etc. to help us teach families how to cook healthy, affordable meals and make better food choices. Your support makes a difference!
