Launching my new series of Pivot posts is a shout out to World Central Kitchen founded 10 years ago by Chef José Andrés. Andrés and his wife, Patricia “envisioned an organization that would create smart solutions to hunger and poverty.” Over the years the organization has worked within impoverished countries to teach people to cook cleanly and safely including converting cooking from wood and charcoal to propane gas and installing water lines and sinks for washing hands and cookware.

WCK responds to emergencies ranging from hurricanes to wildfires and now a worldwide pandemic. Enter WCK’s response to COVID-19 - #ChefsforAmerica a national initiative to connect communities and people with freshly made meals. The effort feeds frontline workers, the elderly who are shuttered due to the pandemic, and children who are missing meals since schools are closed.

Today, around 250,000 fresh meals are served daily in cities across the U.S. utilizing safety protocols developed by WCK, with input from universities that follow CDC guidelines.

The magic of this response is that WCK is connecting people who need meals with restaurant workers and drivers who need jobs. WCK is putting restaurants back to work by paying them to prepare meals and paying drivers to deliver them.

Click here if you are a restaurant interested in joining this effort, to view a map of the cities where fresh meals are served, to learn more, or to donate.

Additionally, WCK has been working behind the scenes in Washington D.C. to share their model of putting restaurants back to business to feed people in need. Andrés alongside a group of bi-partisan senators and congressmen announced the FEED Act, which would allow states to tap into federal funding to enact a similar model in their own communities. Twitter link.

#ChefsforAmerica - an example of how together we can accomplish more.

Photo by Jesson Mata @jessonmata