Thanks to a grant from Farm Credit Canada’s Agrispirit Fund; Dresden Sidestreets Youth Centre was able to renovate the kitchen facility at their Main Street location in Dresden.
The renovated kitchen space will allow them to start a new Life Skills Cooking Program for local youth.
“Cooking provides an avenue for youth to learn a variety of important skills. Through this new program, youth will learn the basic food preparation such as mixing, scooping, and chopping. Other skills are also developed in the kitchen including social skills, working well with others, the importance of cleaning up afterwards, writing grocery lists, reading recipes and math while measuring ingredients,” stated Lori Ouellette, Board Chair Dresden Sidestreets Youth Centre, in a media release.
“Cooking is sometimes used as therapy for depression and anxiety in youth and is very effective at breaking negative thinking cycles. Cooking also promotes patience and rewards you with something delicious to eat in the end. Without the help of Farm Credit Canada we would not have been able to implement this new program for our youth to enjoy, all while gaining skills that will help them on their Journey through Life.”
Dresden Sidestreets Youth Centre is a non-profit charitable organization that provides free recreational programming and drop-in space for youth, 10-17 from Dresden and surrounding rural communities.
Here are some photos of local youth using the kitchen:
