At the Squirrel Hill Community Food Pantry, volunteers are essential at all levels of the Food Pantry’s operations, from stocking shelves and helping clients to unloading food delivery trucks and transporting emptied cartons for recycling.
One of our newest volunteers has not only been volunteering weekly to help us with numerous operational tasks, but will also be helping clients in another way: former “Hell’s Kitchen” contestant and recently returned Pittsburgh native, Elise Wims, will be hosting a “healthy cooking” demonstration for pantry clients and the community on Monday, July 2nd at 3 p.m. at the pantry on Hazelwood Avenue.
Being budget-conscious doesn’t mean you can’t afford to eat healthy foods, and Elise will demonstrate how you can create healthy, gourmet meals with ingredients that can be easily found, whether on the shelves of the Food Pantry or the supermarket.
The Squirrel Hill Community Food Pantry meets the needs of both families that keep kosher as well as those who don’t, so Elise will prepare both a kosher and non-kosher version of her dish.
“The pantry’s mission is so in line with my own personal mission,” Elise said. “I want people to know that even when they’re on a budget, or turning to organizations like the Squirrel Hill Community Food Pantry for help with putting food on their tables, they can still create healthy, great-tasting meals for their families.”
A graduate of the Pittsburgh Culinary Institute, Elise recently started her own business, The Diva Chef LLC, using her culinary talents to teach people how to cook healthy meals. We’re grateful that she has also chosen to given back to the community and has selected our Food Pantry as one of the ways in which she will make a difference.
This free event is open to the public and is not to be missed. Participants who are able are asked to donate one canned food item or item from the SHCFP’s “wish list,” available at www.sqfoodpantry.org.
Space is limited, so make sure to RSVP to Becky Abrams at babrams@sqfoodpantry.org to reserve your spot. We hope to see you at this exciting event!