Now Serving Tennessee
As of 2021, Giving Kitchen is now serving the entire state of Tennessee with both financial assistance and Stability Network resources!
Welcome Weekend
From September 25—27, 2021, we hosted a series of welcome events in Nashville and celebrated Giving Kitchen Day in Tennessee. Thanks to all who joined us to say hey, grab some swag, snag a bite, and raise a glass — we had a blast getting to know the Nashville food service community! And this is just the beginning. With your help, we can make every kitchen in Georgia AND Tennessee a giving kitchen.
We are Giving Kitchen and we help food service workers!
BILINGUAL CASE MANAGERS SPREADING THE WORD
Talía Viggers and Katie Deleon are Bilingual Case Managers at Giving Kitchen, serving food service workers in both English and Spanish. Watch their interview with Nasvhille Noticias here.
Executive Director Bryan Schroeder at the Proclamation Recognition on Giving Kitchen Day at Legislative Plaza in Nashville, TN, September 27, 2021.
A Message from Bryan Schroeder, Executive Director of Giving Kitchen
If you’re connected to food service in Nashville you’ve been part of the tradition (figuratively and literally) of restaurant workers in a circle, passing the hat to take care of one of their own.
So why Giving Kitchen? So what can Giving Kitchen bring to Tennessee?
A few years ago, I had dinner with a major donor to Giving Kitchen who told me that while he was in law school he delivered pizza to help pay the bills. One of his co-workers died unexpectedly, leaving behind a family that needed help with food, rent, and utilities. The next day, everyone in the kitchen stood in a circle and passed a hat. He didn’t think much would come of it. He was there for beer money, but the rest of the employees were working for their families. When the hat got back around, it was full of cash. Over a thousand dollars. He was shocked. He took out whatever cash was in his pocket, dropped it in, and passed the hat back around.
He told me that when he gives to Giving Kitchen, he feels like he’s back in the circle. Except this time, he’s got more to give than a crumpled-up $20 to drop in the hat.
Giving Kitchen can make the circle bigger, we can make the circle better. We can make every kitchen a giving kitchen. Giving Kitchen makes the circle bigger by bringing in the distributors, the breweries and distilleries, manufacturers, real estate — and, most importantly — we can bring the diners into that circle. We can make the circle better by including every food service worker in Tennessee.
Together, we can ensure every kitchen in Tennessee is a giving kitchen. Independent or chain — you work in a giving kitchen. No matter what language you speak — you work in a giving kitchen. North Nashville, Nolensville Pike, Broadway, Memphis, Knoxville, Chattanooga: if you work in restaurants, catering, concessions, food trucks, clubs, bars, taprooms, cafeterias, or commercial food service, you work in a giving kitchen.
Success for Giving Kitchen is the distance between “y’all” and “we.” The day when “Giving Kitchen, y’all do great work” becomes “Giving Kitchen, we do great work” is the most important step to making every Tennessee kitchen a giving kitchen.
And that day is getting closer. Thanks to a generous gift from the Restaurant Workers’ Community Foundation, we have been able to make the dream of expanding our operations to Tennessee a reality.
We can do this.
Thank you, Nashville. Thank you, Tennessee.
GK’S FIRST TENNESSEE CLIENT
Our first Tennessee client was Nate Frusti, who lost his home in the 2020 Christmas Day bombing in Nashville.
Click on the video to watch him tell his story.
TENNESSEE FOOD SERVICE WORKERS WHO HAVE RECEIVED FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE FROM GK
Food runner — COVID-19
Host — achilles surgery
Server — ceiling leak and mold
Server — client died
Server — COVID-19
Server — COVID-19
Server — COVID-19
Server — COVID-19
Assistant Manager — foot surgery
Bartender — apartment bombing
Bartender — dog bite; nerve damage and surgery
Bartender — stage 4 cancer
Bouncer — client died
Cashier — COVID-19
Catering Director — daughter’s COVID-19
Executive Chef — fiancee died
“I’m still capable. Yes, I cannot walk right now, but I was going to find a way. But when [GK] approved [my financial assistance award], it was a big relief, big stress off of me because I know I’m going to be ok. Giving Kitchen is the real deal.”
Tara V., Assistant Manager — foot surgery
Giving Kitchen founder Jen Hiidinger-Kendrick speaks while holding the Giving Kitchen Day proclamation in front of the state house
September 27: Giving Kitchen Day
The governor has dedicated September 27 as a Day of Recognition to welcome Giving Kitchen to #TheVolunteerState. We're honored and humbled to commemorate the occasion at Legislative Plaza in front of the Tennessee State Capitol in Nashville with the official proclamation presentation. Thank you, Tennessee, for welcoming us and inviting GK to serve those who serve others every day.
Special thanks to Tennessee Action For Hospitality and Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee who are joined us on September 27, 2021, to welcome GK to Tennessee and present us with a generous donation to help food service workers in crisis.