Over $650,000 Granted through Emeril Lagasse Foundation Fall Grant Cycle - Emeril.org - Emeril.org Over $650,000 Granted through Emeril Lagasse Foundation Fall Grant Cycle - Emeril.org

Over $650,000 Granted through Emeril Lagasse Foundation Fall Grant Cycle

Funding Supports Mission to Inspire, Mentor, and Enable Youth to Reach Full Potential

Emeril Lagasse Foundation has awarded over $650,000 in grants during its fall grant cycle to non-profit organizations committed to empowering youth through culinary, nutrition, and arts education. These grants will enhance programs that foster life skills and create meaningful opportunities for youth to reach their full potential. Beneficiaries include: Covenant House New Orleans, Edible Education Experience, New Orleans Culinary & Hospitality Institute (NOCHI), Son of a Saint, Youth Empowerment Project (YEP), Café Hope, Pilot Light, and Troy Andrews (Trombone Shorty) Foundation.

Also, the Aarón Sánchez Impact Fund, a program of Emeril Lagasse Foundation, will enable five Latino youth to receive culinary education in New Orleans through the Aarón Sánchez Scholarship. The students will gain hands-on industry experience, as the program works to diversify future kitchen leadership. Established in 2016, the Aaron Sanchez Scholarship is the signature education program of ASIF.

“Alden and I are inspired by the incredible work of these organizations,” said Chef Emeril Lagasse. “The impact they have on the lives of young people, their families, and their communities is far-reaching and we are proud to support their efforts in creating a brighter future for our youth.”

Covenant House New Orleans has been a sanctuary for unhoused youth aged 16-22, including pregnant and parenting youth, since 1987. The organization provides safe shelter, intensive care management, and a range of services including education, workforce development, and nutritional support. Grant funds will provide essential upgrades to Covenant House’s aging facility, ensuring a safe and comfortable environment for  the 700 youth they serve.

Edible Education Experience (EEE) has operated the Emeril Lagasse Kitchen House and Edible Gardens in Orlando, Florida since 2017. EEE offers hands-on nutrition education to students and families. With a focus on grades 3-8,  they teach participants about where food comes from and how to prepare it. Grant funds will provide critical repairs to the Kitchen House, preserving this vital educational space for the 700 youth they serve..

New Orleans Culinary & Hospitality Institute (NOCHI) is dedicated to educating a diverse community of learners to sustain New Orleans’ ever-evolving hospitality industry.  Offering vocational programs, continuing education, and courses for culinary enthusiasts, NOCHI creates accessible career pathways while promoting economic development in the culinary arts and hospitality sectors. Grant funds will go toward the Emeril Lagasse Foundation Scholarship which was established in 2022 and provides funding for two opportunity youth to attend NOCHI’s 100-day culinary certificate program, providing them with the skills and resources needed to thrive in the hospitality industry.

Son of a Saint enhances the lives of fatherless boys through mentorship, emotional support, and life skills development. The Emeril Lagasse Foundation-Son of a Saint Nutrition Education Program helps mentees overcome barriers to health equity by providing education and resources to make lifelong healthy choices. Many families face challenges accessing nutritious food, but this program empowers young men to break cycles of poor health and achieve lasting well-being. Grant funds will support the program’s growth, equipping 300 at-risk youth with essential skills for healthier futures.

Youth Empowerment Project (YEP) engages young people through community-based education, mentoring, employment readiness, and enrichment programs that help them build skills and strengthen connections to family and community. YEP Enriches, an out-of-school-time program for youth ages 7-18, offers after-school and summer programming with activities such as drumline, dance, basketball, arts and music instruction, tutoring, and homework assistance. Grant funds support YEP Enriches, ensuring continued access to these vital opportunities for 250 youth in the Central City and New Orleans East neighborhoods.

Café Hope seeks to change the lives of opportunity youth through a 16-week program designed to meet their holistic needs rather than attempting to rehabilitate youth in the juvenile justice system through incarceration or probation. Since its inception, Café Hope has served over 600 participants.  Grant funds will support 50 opportunity youth in their Seeds of Success program, providing further training opportunities for students, exposing them to various career pathways and supplying them with transferable work skills.

Pilot Light, supported by a grant from the Aarón Sánchez Impact Fund, provides empowers students and teachers through culinary education and provides students with hands-on cooking experiences while helping them connect with the broader context of food. Grant funds will engage 70 Latino students in grades 10-12 at a Chicago high school in 2024-2025 by supporting one Culinary Arts educator with a stipend, training, and a Mobile Kitchen Cart. Additionally, 28 lessons and seven videos will be translated into Spanish to expand access to food education.

Troy Andrews (Trombone Shorty) Foundation inspires the next generation of talented opportunity youth through music education, instruction, mentorship, and performance. Grant funds will support the mission of the Troy Andrews (Trombone Shorty) Foundation including their Music Academy, offering mentorship to students from more than 15 high schools in the New Orleans area.

 

About Emeril Lagasse Foundation: Founded in 2002 by Chef Emeril Lagasse and his wife Alden, Emeril Lagasse Foundation is a 501c(3) public charity headquartered in New Orleans. The Foundation’s mission is to create opportunities to inspire, mentor, and enable youth to reach their full potential through culinary, nutrition, and arts education with a focus on life skills development. Since its inception, Emeril Lagasse Foundation has granted more than $22 million to children’s charities to support culinary, nutrition, and arts programs. The Foundation accomplishes this through three programs. The Community Grants program provides programmatic and capital support to nonprofit organizations across the nation. The signature program, Emeril’s Culinary Garden & Teaching Kitchen, is a national education initiative created to enrich the lives of elementary and middle school children through a fun, fresh perspective on food. The Aarón Sánchez Impact Fund, the newest program, provides culinary arts education and human services programming for Latino youth. To learn more about the foundation and its beneficiaries, visit Emeril.org or follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, or Instagram.