Cooking Well: Good Gifts From God's Hand

A scene from one of our Cooking Well classes this summer

CSM is fighting for health, family, and reconciliation in the magnificent unfolding of God’s great plan for this city. A hunger to bring health and lasting change to the people of Birmingham is the heart of Cooking Well, a 6-week cooking/nutrition education program designed to teach cooking skills, prepare healthy meals on a budget, and the importance of family-centered dinnertime, while also aiming to unite women in the Church and break cultural barriers. The program is also created to be a platform for equipping churches to establish an on-going ministry model that develops relationships and encourages discipleship.

 “Our Cooking Well class was the most perfect 

display of the Kingdom. We all meshed so well 

out of the gate, it felt like the “perfect stew”. 

I loved the stories and topics we shared 

as much as the food. I can’t wait to learn and 

grow with these ladies in the next season.”

Candice Beavers of New Rising Star pictured here 

after graduating with her ladies from NRS with 

Jenny Cochran (l) and Jane DeLaney (r) of eMeals

and Cooking Well Director, Judy Vann (far right)  

As a collaboration of CSM with eMeals, Cooking Well has been in formation with the assistance of Samford’s Nutrition Department staff and interns for the past year. Cooking Well finally came to life this summer with two CSM strategic ministry partners. We taught two six-week pilot cooking courses to six women at New Rising Star in East Lake and ten women from True Vine Ministries in Tarrant/Ingelnook led by the pastor's wife of each church (Candice Beavers and Kathleen Garth respectively). We were blessed to be able to teach with fresh produce from the CSM gardens and greenhouses as well as surplus produce donated to CSM by the Society of St. Andrews from the Pepper Place Farmer's Market. (Going forward, the CSM garden planting strategy will be informed by the successes and needs of the Cooking Well program.)


The Cooking Well program covered six weeks of intense hands-on cooking instruction and nutrition information led by Samford nutrition student, Allie Sanderson, along with the help of CSM staff and volunteers. Key personnel from eMeals were integral in developing and facilitating our pilot classes, including founders, Jane DeLaney and Jenny Cochran, and Clinical Dietician and healthy recipe developer, Andrea Kirkland. We learned that some class participants live in food deserts and many had serious health conditions varying from breast cancer, Multiple Sclerosis, diabetes and hypertension. Each found that they were hungry for nutritional and healthful food preparation knowledge. In both classes, the participants were introduced to new tastes, ideas, cooking techniques, and important life skills that would lead them to eat more healthfully and make better food choices to nourish their families. Each six-week session culminated in a graduation dinner, with participants recognized with a certificate of achievement and a new Cooking Well apron.

Graduation at True Vine Ministries - Allie Sanderson (Samford Nutrition)
and Kathleen Garth (pastor's wife) pictured on the far left side

In a profound way, some of the most affirming aspects of our time together were the relationships that formed while preparing food and learning culinary skills together. Breaking bread together around the table afterward was unifying in ways that no one could expect or explain. Week after week, we witnessed the healing power of a shared healthy meal—shoulder to shoulder, face to face, and eye to eye. The dinner table creates a safe place to dive into conversations about culture, health, marriage, parenting, jobs, and spiritual issues. Relationships were forged while a new approach to individual and family health was embraced. Many of the participants shared with us how the timing of the class met a deep need in their lives—for both health and personal reasons.

We are currently engaged in a deeper integration with Samford's Nutrition Department for an expanded internship/preceptor program as well as community engagement involvement for undergraduate and master's level students. We will be editing and refining the curriculum and training materials throughout the Fall, and plan to have published curriculum in 2018 for both training purposes and program expansion. Our deeper goal is to expand the program in order to bring change to our communities so we can come together to learn from each other, unite the Church, and break cultural barriers. If you are interested in being a part of this life-on-life, interactive, and engaging new experience, please contact Judy Vann at judy@csmission.org.

Allie forging friendships