Lincoln Financial Issues $10K Culinary Job Training Grant

MANCHESTER, NH - The New Hampshire Food Bank, a program of Catholic Charities NH, has received a $10,000 grant from the Lincoln Financial Foundation in support of the NH Food Bank’s Culinary Job Training Program.

The Culinary Job Training Program is open and available to individuals from all locations in the state of New Hampshire, according to a press statement. The Culinary Job Training Program aims to teach unemployed or underemployed adults the culinary skills necessary to seek employment in the food service industry.

“The New Hampshire Food Bank is proud to say the Culinary Job Training Program has been made possible in part by a grant from the Lincoln Financial Foundation,” said Mel Gosselin, the executive director of the New Hampshire Food Bank. “The positive impact and new opportunities this program offers students is extremely rewarding and we are truly grateful to the Lincoln Financial Foundation for its support.”

Trainees in the Culinary Job Training Program will be able to showcase their skills by catering events and gaining real-world experience serving and preparing meals. Teamwork is an important component of the training; participants learn how to work together, divide tasks among themselves, manage conflicts, and behave professionally. Additionally, the New Hampshire Food Bank’s Culinary Job Training Program provides training on basic financial skills, resume writing, and interview skills and techniques.

During 2015, the NH Food Bank’s Culinary Job Training Program produced 129,830 meals for those in need. Since its inception in 2008, 448 people have graduated from the Culinary Job Training Program.

The Culinary Job Training Program offers a broad range of efficient kitchen practices and fundamentals including:

• Identification of food and ingredients
• Use of kitchen implements and equipment
• Measurements skills
• Nutrition understanding and education
• Knife skills
• Preparation techniques
• Safe food handling (as part of the National Restaurant Association’s ServSafe Program)
• Cleaning and sanitation

For more information, please visit nhfoodbank.org.

Caption: The New Hampshire Food Bank, a program of Catholic Charities NH, recently received a $10,000 grant from the Lincoln Financial Foundation to support the NH Food Bank’s Culinary Job Training Program. The Culinary Job Training Program teaches unemployed or underemployed adults the culinary skills necessary to seek employment in the food service industry. Pictured here is Byron Champlin, Program Officer of the Lincoln Financial Foundation, and Mel Gosselin, Executive Director of the NH Food Bank, along with Culinary Job Training Program participants.