February is an exciting month for Courageous Kitchen! Not only have our weekend classes for at risk youth began again, but there are lots of other food and travel happenings this time of year. Most notably, one of our founders, Dwight Turner, will be speaking at The Seasons press conference this week. The event is hosted by the Thailand Authority of Tourism (TAT), and has rounded up a panel of people from varying backgrounds whose businesses or personal passion are impacting Thailand for the better.
Here’s a sneak peek into TAT’s interview with Dwight, where he discusses starting Courageous Kitchen, and connecting his personal passion for food with his mission to feed and educate more children in Bangkok.
How did you start CK and what is your objective?
Courageous Kitchen began because I was looking for a way to give back in my free time, but I didn’t know what to do. When a friend invited me to help teach English in a few poorer communities, I fell in love with it. Gradually I wanted to contribute more and more.
Dwight and his courageous pupils!
Later when I moved outside of the city center, we had space for a kitchen and I began to combine these two passions. Quickly we learned that the kitchen is a great classroom. Students who were shy about speaking English suddenly had context, an application, and an urgency to speak in the kitchen. As their language skills improved, so did their confidence.
Why do you use food as a medium to help you achieve your goals?
I love to eat and Bangkok is full of food and food enthusiasts. So it’s a great way to get people’s attention and bring them together for a purpose. This is true even when it may seem like we don’t have anything in common. We may speak a different language, have different skin color, but when we sit at the table together, we share and learn about each other.
What do you think of Thai food? What makes Thai cuisine outstanding to you?
I love Thai food because of the diversity of influences on the cuisine. There is such a pronounced Indian influence, the Chinese influence is probably the strongest, and there’s an interesting impact from the hill tribes and neighboring countries in the region as well.
Dwight often hosts one of Bangkok’s most sought after street food tours.
This makes Thai food versatile for different types of people. You may not love chili and chicken feet curry, you may be vegetarian, or have another preference, but there’s likely a Thai dish out there for you.
Why are you interested in helping society, and helping underprivileged kids in Bangkok?
As a Black American I was raised with very strong sense of social justice. That all people are valuable, and that all people should be treated equally. Until this becomes a reality, we have a lot of work to do to create a better future for today’s kids. That’s true all over the world, but trying to solve global problems can seem overwhelming. That’s why it’s best to start by being the change we want to see in our local communities.
As a nonprofit, what do you expect to get in return for you work?
As a nonprofit, my job is challenging and rewarding everyday. There’s a very real challenge to captivate people’s attention long enough to share about people in need, and convince them to take action. However, seeing students, who may have never been in a real restaurant before, imagining themselves as chefs, speaking English more confidently, and becoming leaders in their families is a pretty great reward.
Any upcoming plans for CK?
At the moment we’re looking into ways to grow and strengthen our business. We don’t want to be solely dependent on people’s donations, so we’re looking to offer more to tourists who love food, and are passionate about making a difference with their visit to Thailand.
Is there a place in Thailand that you’re especially impressed by and why?
I recently got married in Langsuan, Chumporn. Each time we visit my wife’s family there I usually spend time in the gardens picking fruit off of the nutmeg, taling pling, and other trees in the yard. We have one cousin with a palm orchard, and another growing durian! I know you may expect me to say mountains or beaches, but it’s hard to beat family and food!
Thank you to TAT for hosting Dwight this week! We look forward to continuing this discussion as Thailand’s responsible tourism scene continues to develop. Other guests on the panel include representatives from Pop Art Bann 36, Immanuel Music School, Tlejourn Shoes, and Thai celebrity Top Pipat Apirakthanakorn.
This December Courageous Kitchen celebrates a year as an official charity! With such a turbulent year behind us, we’re more excited than ever to be doing fulfilling, important work in communities so often overlooked. With that said we want to tell you about our latest partnership with two great organization based in Bangkok.
In recent months we have been connected with Share Soap, an organization collecting unused toiletries, and Support the Girls, another group collecting donations of bras and feminine products. That means this year the primary thing under the Courageous Kitchen Christmas tree is soap, toothpaste, sanitary pads, and bras!
A photo posted by The Courageous Kitchen (@courageouskitchen) on
If you’re thinking, “Who the heck wants soap for Christmas?!” then thankfully you’re like most of us who don’t have to decide between feeding our families and personal hygiene. While most anyone would expect to see some toys under the tree, we’re instead thankful for our new found partner organizations who are helping us spread dignity and self confidence to the vulnerable women we work with of all ages.
We’ll be giving out the remaining donations this coming weekend and having our year end Christmas Eve class. The occasion calls for a big meal for our students and their families, being thankful for the year that’s past, and looking forward anticipating more great things in 2017. Thank you for your support this past year and if you’re a newcomer to our project, please get in contact about helping a family or even reserving a seat in our new cooking class!
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all!
PS – US Citizens don’t forget to claim your donations on your taxes in the coming year! If you’ve given $250 or more, let us know and we’ll happily provide a donor acknowledgement form for you to submit along with your returns.
Holiday giving season is upon us and we’ve just updated our website with Stripe integration to make it easier to take donations! This means whether you’re doing a one time meal sponsorship or interested in setting up a recurring donation to help a family in 2017, it’s easier and fee free for a limited time!
The Credit Card Option & Incremental Giving
A few of you have written to us about problems with Paypal accounts, or trouble donating from certain places around the world. We’re happy to report these issues should mostly be sorted out and as a registered charity we’re approved for the Stripe Nonprofit program. This means the first $15,000 we raise online before next November, will not be charged any fees! In the future we’ll still be eligible for a discount on fees, but keep in mind this deal is exclusively for Courageous Kitchen in 2017!
When you make a donation on our website the default option should be set to credit card. This processing option is Stripe and you can enter your information securely by following the pop down menus. Paypal lovers don’t fret the option is still available for those who prefer this method and we’ve added a page to explain other donation options too.
Online shoppers can give small amounts incrementally, but these donations add up!
Finally online shoppers don’t forget you can search for “Courageous Kitchen” in the nonprofit programs on your favorite sites such as Amazon and Ebay. Select us are your charity of choice and when you check out a small percentage of your payment will go towards our efforts creating leaders!
2017 Giving Campaigns
For the holiday and on into 2017 you will see us promoting two giving campaigns. The first is to get our classes funded for the full year next year, with a fundraising goal of $10,000. This is money to cover our shopping expenses for each meal and additional would help us to get more advanced equipment (we are currently only cooking on gas woks) and much needed safety equipment for our fast action kitchen (first aid kids, new fire extinguishers, etc…). This part of the project is the heart of our story and we’ve made the options for giving flexible with a $1 donation to give a plate of food to a student, up to sponsoring an entire cooking class for $100 (you can also choose a custom amount to donate).
The second mission for 2017 is to get as many families sponsored as possible in our community. As we build stronger families, we also want to strengthen the family unit our students go back to after class. Your sponsorship could enable a family to find safer housing, afford the children in the family a chance to see the doctor, and purchase food and medication. These recurring donations are also better for small organizations like ours, as they allow us to forecast giving into the future and respond quickly to emergency needs.
Thank you for your support and sticking with us as we’ve grown over the past year, we’re confident great things are on the horizon in 2017!
We’re excited to announce the latest Courageous Kitchen documentary called Urban Refugee: Bangkok. The 12 minute film debuted recently on youtube and we hope you’ll watch below and share with friends:
The film was directed and shot by Tara Milutis a talented American filmmaker. She helps explain the plight of urban refugees and asylum seekers in Bangkok, in their own words. Each of the narratives is assisted by members of the community who have been actively working to aid this vulnerable group of people. The video also introduces views to the work of the Courageous Kitchen, especially in the lives of children who don’t have typical access to education, live in broken homes, and who are not eating enough nutritious food. The goal of the film is to inspire, educate, and challenge people to get involved. Please do take the time to leave a comment and let us know what you think!
Common Questions About the Video:
I had no idea this was happening, how can I help?
You can help further the mission by donating to our project, especially by creating a recurring donation. When you click the donate button there are options where you can choose to donate, no matter how large or small the gift. Beyond giving financially, following along on our facebook page, while sharing our activities with friends is a contribution we don’t take for granted.
Finally for people who will be traveling to Thailand and hoping to get involved please be aware most of our volunteer opportunities go to people who are in the country long term. Although there are not many short term opportunities, do make sure you follow our facebook page for events and other happenings where you may participate.
Is this a Christian ministry?
Courageous Kitchen is a non religious, non political public charity. The classification of our organization means we neither discriminate among the people we help, nor the volunteers who help us, based on religious or political affiliation.
While we do enjoy good relationships with some churches and faith based organizations, we do not receive any regular financial contributions from these institutions.
Is it possible to donate clothes?
No, we are not currently accepting any clothing donations. We do encourage people interested in giving their clothes to find another local charity who can accept these in-kind gifts. If you are in Thailand, one such organization is called Second Chance Bangkok. For other locations around the world, please check with the local refugee organizations in your community.
