How The RCSJ Kitchen Rolls

 
POSTED: October 2, 2017 under Blog Cafe Activities Volunteers

The kitchen at RCSJ provides members with good, nourishing meals through the food contributions and kindness of partners, friends and strangers. Let me tell you about them.

Did you know that the Cafe kitchen has a very limited budget to source food or insure that we have specific ingredients necessary for common recipes?

The majority of our food and ingredients are provided by the Second Harvest Food Bank of Santa Clara and San Mateo Counties. They acquire food from the government, corporations, farms, grocery chains and other sources and distribute it to RCSJ and thousands of other agencies that help feed people in our area. We are deeply grateful for the abundant support that they provide to us and our members.

Veggielution is our nutritional ace-in-the -hole. It is a charitable organic farm in the San Jose that was started by students from San Jose State University. The cafe receives all the produce left after their Saturday Farm Stand providing some of our most nutrient dense foods offered at the cafe. They also provide fruit weekly from their vegetable gleaning program.

The First Methodist Church of Los Gatos partners with us for special events such as our Open Mic Nights. Through their generosity we are able to provide special, themed meals that require specific ingredients that we would not be able to source otherwise. They provide funding, do the shopping and bring members of their congregation to help prepare and serve the meal, usually for about 80 guests.

Without our friends Luz, Ron, Colleen, Esther, Tom, Linda and Jennifer from these partner organizations RCSJ would not be able to undertake its mission. And without the many strangers to us that work and volunteer with our partners they would not be able to provide us the significant support that they do.

Thank you all from the Cafe staff, its members and volunteers, and from me.

Doug Lynner
Chef and Kitchen Manager