Houston Chapter Archived Projects

The Houston Chapter actively supports Recipe for Success foundation, an organization committed to combating childhood obesity by connecting children with their food. RFS builds school gardens and engages elementary aged students in hands on gardening and cooking experiences. Houston Dames volunteer through the RFS Chefs in Schools program where they adopt an elementary class for the school year are actively involved in teaching seasonal cooking classes with their group on a monthly basis. In addition to hosting restaurant field trip opportunities for their class, Houston Dames also regularly participate in special events and fundraisers to help support the mission. In 2011, the Houston Chapter sponsored weekly after school classes at MacGregor Elementary in Houston. If it wasn’t for the dames, the elementary school would have not been able to continue with their after school gardening and cooking program.

Barbara McKnight making lettuce wraps with her 4th graders	Barbara McKnight on the White House Lawn at the Chefs Moves to School launch	Chara Gafford talking to her class
Claire Smith teaching 4th graders how to make fruit kabobs	Molly Kiminski teaching a class for the Peanut Association	Barbara McKnight harvesting with 4th graders
Chara Gafford cooking with 4th graders	Grace Cavnar cooking with 4th graders	Claire Smith on a restaurant field trip

Many Houston Dames volunteer countless hours with the Recipe for Success Foundation delivering hands on cooking classes with harvests from the school recipe gardens. Dame, Gracie Cavnar is the founder and CEO of this organization that provides Seed-to-Plate Education (TM) to thousands of children each month. Website: www.recipe4success.org.

Here is a link to a video
 

Please visit The Gallery (click here) to view photos of Dames all working in Recipe for Success kitchen classrooms or gardens, or hosting field trips to their restaurants.
 

Houston Dames are busy on weekends manning the Cook's Corner at the Bayou City Farmer's Market managed by Dame Jacquie Miller. Dames create recipes using local, seasonally available produce, meats, eggs and cheese and hand out samples and recipes to inspire shoppers. In addition to making and handing out delicious samples, Houston Dames sell the Mary Nell Reck cookbook Flavors of Life with the funds going to culinary scholarships.