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New Nonprofit to Open Catering Service, Training Homeless Men
The Cookery is seeking donations to implement culinary arts school
Nashville, Tenn. (Oct. 26, 2011) – The Cookery, a new local nonprofit program located on 1827 12th Avenue South, is seeking assistance from the public to start a catering service that will offer job training and employment opportunities for homeless individuals. Eventually The Cookery will become a full-service restaurant.
Brett Swayn, director of Lambscroft, said The Cookery will provide training in the culinary arts to some of the most vulnerable people in our community and help lead them to self-sufficiency.
“One of our mottos is to help people go from pity to compassion,” Swayn said. “Lambscroft is about creating the partnerships within our community that are necessary to help people help themselves through education, job training as well as physical and spiritual health.”
The Cookery is a subsidiary of Lambscroft, a one-year old 501(c)3 nonprofit organization with the mission to bring the poor, spiritually bankrupt and/or financially destitute into a safe environment, provide immediate shelter and teach skills necessary for the restoration of the entire being.
One of The Cookery’s supporters is The Key Alliance, a nonprofit with the goal to raise awareness and funds to end chronic homelessness and reduce overall homelessness.
“In today’s economy it is hard for anyone to find a job,” Clifton Harris, executive director of The Key Alliance, said. “We believe that Housing + Case Management + Income = A Reduction in Homelessness.
“In the past recession and the current economy, it is really hard to find income sources for some of our most vulnerable neighbors who are homeless,” Harris continued. “With its focus on job training, The Cookery provides a missing link in our community. That is why The Key Alliance supports Lambscroft’s goal to get The Cookery up and going.”
The end goal is for The Cookery to become a full-service restaurant where Nashvillians can enjoy a delicious dinner while homeless individuals are trained in the culinary arts and learn a trade that helps pay the rent.
“We will start out as a catering café and culinary training center,” Swayn said. “While The Cookery will focus on education and job training, Lambscroft is about getting people off the streets. We will connect people not only with a job, but with other services through partner agencies.”
Swayn said the organization needs some urgent help to raise $12,000, the amount needed to give The Cookery a successful start.
“We were lucky to receive great support from local restaurants and other organizations who donated us a stove, fridges and other much appreciated equipment,” Swayn, who used to be homeless himself before he received a chance to work his way up at Flemings Steakhouse, which has become a big supporter of The Cookery.
People interested in helping can donate online at www.lambscroft.org or call 615-293-1945 for more information.
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