HOUSTON, TEXAS -Recipe for Success Foundation (RFS) and Houston Grand Opera (HGO) are creating a community table for all of Houston to share traditions of food, culture, and stories in an event that is the culmination of Houston's Citizenship Week. Food for Thought... or Just for Fun! is a free event on Grace Event Lawn at Discovery Green Park in Downtown Houston on Saturday, November 21, 2009 from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm.
Family activities will include performances of Hansel and Gretel and How Nanita Learned to Make Flan by Houston Grand Opera's Opera to Go!, a demonstration of how to make flan by local celebrity chef and RFS Advisory Board Member, Peter Garcia of El Meson Restaurant, Good Enough to Eat! a holiday story collection by Recipe for Success Foundation, the collection of Historias by StoryCorps, and the creation of a dynamic table set for all Houston communities and families with drawings, poems and recipes of celebrations contributed by all who attend. As a special treat the school winners of the annual RFS Holiday Story Writing Contest for 4th grade students will read their work on NPR's StoryCorp and on the Food for Thought stage.
"Stories, children and food," says Gracie Cavnar, founder of Recipe for Success Foundation, "are the glue that binds us all together. The sharing of these stories over food form traditions that last a lifetime." Sandra Bernhard, HGOco director adds, "Every culture has a storytelling tradition. Houston Grand Opera helps provide unique ways to share our stories. Gathered at the table, we will spend the day sharing customs about food, culture, and community through art, music and stories." There is room for everyone at the table.
The Schedule of Events:
10:00 am - 5:00 pm "Good Enough to Eat" Holiday Story Collection
Recipe for Success invites you to share your favorite recipe or story with us on video. Selected stories will be shown on our website during the holiday season at www.recipe4success.org
10:00 am - 5:00 pm Art Project: Room at the Table
Let's set a table for Houston. Create a work of art that tells the story of your favorite holiday, celebration, recipe or family story.
10:00 am - 11:00 am Opera to Go! presents Hansel and Gretel
This beloved fairy tale by Engelbert Humperdink with a lively libretto by Kate Pogue.is full of magic and musical mischief.
11:15 am - 12:00 pm Under Construction: Gingerbread House Artist "build off"
Watch Recipe for Success Foundation culinary interns fro Ai Institute build of gingerbread houses then vote for your favorite. Materials have been provided by RFS Advisory Board member, Scott Tycer and his Kraftsmen Bakery
12:00 pm-12:30 pm RFS Advisory Board member, Chef Peter Garcia makes Flan!
Learn how to make flan as demonstrated by Chef Peter Garcia of El Meson Restaurant.
1:00 pm - 2:00 pm Opera to Go! presents How Nanita Learned to Make Flan
Nanita makes a pair of shoes that magically transport her far away from home. This journey story by Campbell Geeslin set to music by Enrique Gonzalez-Medina demonstrates the strength of family and duty. On the way we learn to make flan...opera style.
2:00 pm - 3:00 pm HGOco artists present Create a Story!
Be a part of an interactive opera work created through audience participation.
3:00 pm - 3:30 pm Story Share
Winners of the Recipe for Success Foundation 4th grade Story Writing Contest will share remembrances of their favorite holiday food with everyone in the park.
RECIPE FOR SUCCESS FOUNDATION is a non-profit 501C3 charity dedicated to combating childhood obesity by changing the way children understand, appreciate and eat their food. With volunteer assistance from 58 professional chefs, RFS works with over 3000 elementary-aged children every month using their unique Seed-to-Plate Nutrition Education™ program that makes healthy eating fun. The effects are profound after just three years of Chefs in Schools™, Recipe Gardens, Eat This! & Kids Dig It! After School™ and Eat This! Summer Camps™, with parents reporting changed eating behaviors. Participating children respond enthusiastically to new foods, including more fruits and vegetables, and display a clear understanding of what healthy eating is all about. The Foundation is preparing its programs for national distribution as early as 2010. Eat It! Food Adventures™, a cookbook for kids authored by RFS founder, Gracie Cavnar in collaboration with staff and volunteer chefs is scheduled for release in 2010. For more information call 713-520-0443 or see www.recipe4success.org
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