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**Add Passion and Stir**

Every other Wednesday, “Add Passion and Stir” shares the inspirational stories of individuals who set their sights on a problem and use their strengths to create solutions. Hosted by Share Our Strength’s founder Billy Shore, a leading advocate in food justice for 40 years, we convene leaders from the worlds of hospitality, education, government, and beyond tackling issues like hunger, systemic racism, and access to education. Join us to learn how you can share your strength. Follow us on Twitter @AddPassionStir and Instagram @billshore and like us on Facebook.

Latest Episodes:

Do What You Love and Love What You Do Jul 11, 2018

Show notes

How does having a voice create responsibilities and opportunities to drive change? Lee Schrager, creator

of the wildly successful South Beach and New York City Wine & Food Festivals, sits down with Chef

Kevin Tien (Himitsu in Washington, DC) and hosts Debbie and Billy Shore to discuss the ever-greater

influence chefs are having on culture and social change. “Thirty-five years ago, chefs were not

superstars, they weren’t rock stars. Now people are listening to them,” says Schrager. Recently named

one of the 10 Best New Chefs for 2018 by Food & Wine Magazine, Tien is very aware of his own rising

influence. “Right now I’m at a point in my career where I’m starting to have a voice. With that comes the

responsibility of doing what’s right, giving back and giving support where it’s needed,” he explains. The

guests discuss the importance of celebrities having influence on a variety of societal issues from hunger

to mental health. The group discusses the recent suicide of Anthony Bourdain, who many of them knew.

They express disbelief that someone who seemed happy and was such a meaningful contributor to so

many people’s lives through his adventurous food and culture show struggled with depression. “Mental

illness masks itself in many different ways,” muses Schrager.

Both guests feel fortunate to have made careers of their passions. Tien worked in kitchens growing up but

entered the corporate world after college. “I wasn’t happy, so I decided to quit my job and go back into

cooking. It feels good to feed others, it feels good to give back, and I want to find a way to do it on a

larger scale,” he reveals. Schrager attended the Culinary Institute of America but realized he did not want

to be a professional chef. “I learned years ago you gotta do what you love and love what you do. And I

love what I do,” he says. The New York City Wine & Food Festival is considered the largest food and wine

festival in NYC, featuring 500 world-renowned chefs, culinary personalities, entertainers and wine and

spirit producers. One hundred percent of the net proceeds benefit the No Kid Hungry campaign and Food

Bank For New York City.

Listen to this important conversation about staying true to your passions and using your voice to help

others.

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Driving Culture Change and Staying True to Your Beliefs Jul 04, 2018

Show notes

Where do the most effective social change agents focus their efforts? Soupergirl founder Sara Polon and Community Wealth Partners CEO Amy Celep join hosts Billy and Debbie Shore to discuss their motivations and strategies for changing the world. Celep works at the systems level helping other organizations accelerate the pace of social change. She cites KaBOOM!, the national nonprofit dedicated to children’s play, as an example. “We helped [them] say, ‘what we need to do is not just build playgrounds and the infrastructure for play, we need to shift the cultural norm in this country,’” she explains. Polon started Soupergirl to shift the cultural norm through individual decisions. By using only plant-based ingredients sourced largely from sustainable local farms, she is giving consumers better choices that could help fix our broken food system. “Our mantra is changing the world one bowl of soup at a time,” she says.

Both guests are story-tellers who changed careers in order to drive change. Formerly a stand-up comedian, Polon knew she wanted to shift to fixing the food system after reading Michael Pollan’s The Omnivore’s Dilemma. “We’re trying to be so careful about what we put in the soup. Knowing where the food comes from, who grew it, what’s the story of it… we work every day to make sure we stay true to those values,” she says. Celep was formerly a television news producer. “I wanted to tell stories, but the stories you tell on local news were not the stories I wanted to tell. I wanted to tell stories about people changing the world,” she says.

Listen to these two dynamic, purpose-driven women share their stories about why and how they are changing the world.

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Taste of the Nation Boston: So Much More Than Fundraising Jun 27, 2018

Show notes

It’s more than just fundraising! In this playful episode of Add Passion and Stir, host Billy Shore and event emcee Taniya Nayak (HGTV, Food Network) conduct “red carpet” interviews at the 2018 Taste of the Nation Boston. Guests include Celebrity Chef Tiffani Faison (Sweet Cheeks Q, Tiger Mama), Adam Amontea (Cafco), Lacey Berrien and David Miller (Boston Society), and Emily Pochman (Share Our Strength). In its 30th year, the event features 60 chefs from Boston-area restaurants and raises more than $210,000 for No Kid Hungry. “One of my favorite feelings in the world is to see people come together to enjoy a meal in a space that I got to design,” says Nayak. Faison talks about her background and commitment to social justice and LGBTQ rights. “My job is to make it easier for the next generation, so… they can just give their art, their spirit and their love to the world without having to consider their safety,” she says. Amontea, who is one of the event sponsors, describes his company’s ties to the culinary world and long-standing commitment to No Kid Hungry. Berrien and Miller share their thoughts on the work they are doing to get the next generation of philanthropists involved.

Billy and Taniya also get a surprise visit from Erik and Farrah - a first-grade teacher in the Boston public school system – newlyweds who purchased 125 tickets to the event for their wedding guests because they feel so strongly about the cause of child hunger. “I look at my students and there’s such an impact…when they’re fed, they’re able to learn,” says the bride in her wedding dress.

You won’t want to miss this lighthearted but inspiring episode that makes you feel like you are in the crowd at Taste of the Nation Boston.

Resources and Mentions:

· No Kid Hungry (nokidhungry.org): Share Our Strength’s No Kid Hungry campaign is ending child hunger in America by ensuring all children get the healthy food they need, every day.

· Taniya Nayak is one of the nation’s foremost interior designers. She became a household name as a design expert member on HGTV and Food Network. Nayak owns a successful, Boston-based interior design firm, Taniya Nayak Design LLC., where she adds a fresh, clean look to both commercial and residential spaces. Nayak has served as host and designer for a variety of HGTV mainstays like Designed to Sell, Billion Dollar Block, House Hunters on Vacation, and on Robert Irvine’s Food Network series, Restaurant: Impossible. She is also a judge on ABC’s The Great Christmas Light Fight. Nayak’s helpful decorating tips have been featured in Architectural Digest India, HGTV Magazine, Design New England, People, Cosmopolitan, Glamour, The Boston Globe, Family Circle, The Washington Post, Ladies Home Journal, and many more. She has appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show, ABC’s Good Morning America & The View, NBC’s Today, CBS’ The Early Show & The Talk, and Rachael Ray.

· Tiffani Faison is Chef and owner of Sweet Cheeks Q and Tiger Mama in Boston. She began her career working under such renowned chefs as Daniel Boulud, Alain Ducasse, Todd English and Tony Maws. In 2006, early into her career, she was cast on the very first season of Bravo’s Top Chef and placed as runner-up. From there, she worked in prestigious kitchens in Nantucket, New Orleans, Los Angeles, and San Francisco before returning to Boston in 2010 to become Executive Chef of Southern Italian restaurant, Rocca Kitchen & Bar. Faison opened Sweet Cheeks Q in 2011, drawing inspiration from her love of Southern barbecue and extensive travels in Texas. Sweet Cheeks became an instant hit for its laid-back Southern charm and addictive offerings. In December 2015, Faison expanded on her culinary skills, creativity and business savvy with a new restaurant: Tiger Mama. The Boston Globe called Tiger Mama “a spectacular restaurant” with dishes that you’ll “take to the grave” and hospitality that “feels generous and natural.” Boston magazine awarded Faison as “Best Chef: General Excellence” in its July 2016 “Best of Boston” issue. In November 2016, the Boston Business Journal named Faison to its 2016 Power 50 list, “The Game Changers,” celebrating individuals from Boston’s multiple industries and professions who are making a difference in their business communities. She is a tireless advocate of LGBTQ human rights.

· Sweet Cheeks Q opened in 2011 and almost immediately garnered a three-star review from The Boston Globe. From 2012 to 2016, it was awarded “Boston’s Best Barbecue” for five straight years by Boston magazine. Its biscuits were deemed “Best Biscuits in the World” by Forbes. All of their meats are responsibly sourced and all natural. They use local farms when possible.

· Tiger Mama is Chef Tiffani Faison’s love letter to Southeast Asia. Unapologetically spicy, sharp and funky flavors create a menu of authentic classics and intentionally inauthentic riffs on dishes and ingredients we love. Brian Callahan’s world class Tiki Program is the perfect liquid counterpoint, embracing classic Tiki Cocktails, pushing the envelope of presentation, technique and flavor exploration with unique ingredients, premium liquors and juices pressed daily.

· Cafco is a Boston-based construction management firm specializing in restaurant, hotel, residential and academic projects. Our passion is to help clients transform their ideas into reality. Our collaborative approach engages clients early in the process and carefully guides their vision from concept to execution.

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Community and Friendship and Family Jun 20, 2018

Show notes

Why are personal connections the key to success? In this episode of Add Passion and Stir, Jennifer Eddy (Founder and Executive Director of Root in Salem, MA) and Michael Pagliarini (Chef and Owner of Giulia and Benedetto in Boston) discuss how success is so often predicated on having strong social ties within a community. A No Kid Hungry supporter, Chef Pagliarini sees his restaurants as invaluable pieces of the communities they serve. “When a restaurant can feel like it is part of a community where the community has a sense of ownership of that restaurant, that’s when it’s working,” he says. Eddy sees the same dynamic at Root, a non-profit social enterprise that serves at-risk and disconnected youth through culinary and life skills training programs. “At the end of their 5-hour shift, [participants] all sit down for a family meal together. I think is probably one of the most powerful parts of Root…They suddenly have a community and a friendship and a family,” she says.

Pagliarini also sees the strong community that happens in a restaurant kitchen. “The sense of comradery in a kitchen is one of the most galvanizing forces that keeps people coming back,” he explains. In addition to learning “wrap-around” skills such as interviewing, financial literacy and teamwork, students at Root take on an externship in a busy kitchen at a local restaurant where they often become a valuable member of that restaurant community. “50-60% of young people that go through externships end up getting job offers from the [restaurant] where they worked,” Eddy notes.

Listen to how two social entrepreneurs explain the importance of strong community.

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José Andrés and the #1 Killer of Women and Children Jun 13, 2018

Show notes

Can a simple cookstove end world hunger and poverty? Celebrity chef José Andrés was named one of the Time 100 Most Influential People of 2018 for his dedication to humanitarian causes and recently delivered more than 3 million meals in Puerto Rico in the wake of the devastating 2017 hurricanes, but he has been helping people around the world for many years. He joins host Billy Shore and United Nations Foundation President and CEO Kathy Calvin to discuss why a simple clean cookstove drives cultural, environmental and economic change in the developing world. “If we want to end poverty in this century, I believe clean cookstoves is the one single issue [where] everything meets,” says Andrés. “It’s one of the number one killers of women and children in the world,” agrees Calvin, explaining the UN Foundation’s Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves initiative. The statistics are jarring: Four million women and children around the world die every year as a result of inhaling the smoke and soot from wood, coal and kerosene cookstoves.

These two changemakers believe Americans should care more about global poverty issues. Andrés, who poured his heart and soul into helping the people of Haiti and Puerto Rico, references the current national conversation about building walls to keep people out. “The only wall conversation we should be having is walls that we’re going to build to create community kitchens and schools,” he explains. “If we don’t pay attention to what’s happening around the world, we will find it hitting us and in ways we don’t like,” notes Calvin.

Listen in as these two passionate anti-hunger and poverty crusaders explain a simple solution to one of the most intractable problems in the world.

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Get Dirty and Get Involved! Jun 06, 2018

Show notes

Is sustainable farming the key to restoring our planet? On this episode of Add Passion and Stir, American Farmland Trust President and CEO John Piotti and Chef John Mooney (Bell Book & Candle, NYC; Bidwell, DC) talk with host Billy Shore and producer Paul Woodhull about the far-reaching impact of building a more sustainable food system. “If we don’t get farming right, we can’t have a sustainable future,” says Piotti. Chef Mooney’s restaurants use aeroponic rooftop gardens, which combine hydroponics with vertical growing techniques to grow fresh, pesticide-free produce. “It really suits us well to be able to do what I want to do as a chef and have it on location. [Staff] also get to learn and maintain, which gives them a little better sense of where our food comes from, which translates into the guest experience,” he notes.

Preserving farmland is one of the most important functions of American Farmland Trust. “Farmland itself plays a huge role in environmental protection,” explains Piotti. “But you can’t think about only the farm. You have to think about the farming practices that occur on that land and you have to think about the farmers who are stewards of that land,” he says. Well-known for his commitment to sustainability, Chef Mooney also owns Kakele House, an organic farm and event space on the North Shore of Oahu. “For me it’s a lifestyle and not a job,” he says. Piotti touts the benefits that small, diversified farms like Kakele House have on communities.

Listen in as these two guests discuss the meaning of sustainability and its impact on environmental, social and economic vitality.

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Proximity Point: Solving Problems by Getting Closer May 30, 2018

Show notes

What difference does it make to get close to the problem? “You really can’t solve the world’s problems from a distance. You have to get up close. You have to be proximate,” says New Profit Partner Marco Davis on this episode of Add Passion and Stir. He talks with Diane Gross, owner of Cork Wine Bar in Washington DC, and host Billy Shore about focusing on diversity, inclusion and equity. Davis describes how New Profit uses venture philanthropy to help nonprofit organizations scale up to maximize impact by focusing on organizational success instead of programmatic goals. They also use an explicit focus on diversity in leadership. “[Leaders from diverse backgrounds] have greater proximity to the issues that they’re working on, and therefore have some insight and added value that they bring to the table,” he explains. Gross likens it to the restaurant industry. “There’s a lot of diversity in the work force, but not in leadership roles,” she says. She believes that supports like health care and maternity leave would help women and people of color achieve leadership roles in the industry.

Gross also values proximity in her own philanthropic efforts. She and her husband decided to focus their efforts on food and education in the community where they live and work because both their staff and their customers are priorities. Outside of his work for New Profit, Davis - a veteran of the Obama White House - actively supports and engages candidates and policymakers at the state and local level because he believes that so many key decisions that affect people’s lives in a significant way happen at the state and local level. Shore calls this “a different version of the proximity point.”

Get informed and inspired by these two social justice activists who drive change by getting closer.

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Why Not Just Write A Check? May 23, 2018

Show notes

What role does Chefs Cycle play in the success of No Kid Hungry? This episode of Add Passion and Stir takes place at Chefs Cycle 2018. Krista Anderson of New Seasons Market in Portland, OR, Hugh Mangum chef/co-owner of Mighty Quinn’s New York Barbeque and Ed Doyle of Real Food Consulting in Boston join host Billy Shore after riding 100 miles for the second day to talk about their experiences participating in Chefs Cycle. The question is raised as to why go to such great lengths to raise funds. “There’s strength in numbers and numbers are community, and the community is always going to be a we, and we is always stronger than I,” says Magnum. Anderson talks about one of her teammates who used a twitter campaign to get his company to donate a money to No Kid Hungry. “And there were some comments back ‘just write the check’. Then you don’t have that spread the word,” she observed. Billy Shore notes that Chefs Cycle brings in more first-time donors (4000 per year) than anything Share Our Strength has done because of everyone reaching out to their networks. “It is such an easy ask. I don’t think anyone that I’ve asked has said no. You explain the cause. You explain that you’re not nuts…and they happily sign up, and then again year after year,” says Doyle.

In addition to raising $2M to support No Kid Hungry, the guests discuss the challenges of the rides and the sense of community that grows out of the event. “You have the moments when you’re feeling great and moments where you’re like how the hell am I going to finish this, but the coolest thing is to see people who are avid cyclists, people who are not avid cyclists…and everyone pulls together,” says Doyle. Talking about the recent fires that ravaged Sonoma County, Anderson notes that “having to look around…and taking it all in and seeing just a fireplace and black trees was pretty sobering.” Mangum agrees but points out that riding in “the amazing community in Santa Rosa adds another sense of purpose.” He describes riding by a school where 80 kids came running out to spur on the cyclists. “That was a moment I’ll never forget.”

Get inspired by these amazing guests who tackle the incredible physical and mental challenge of Chefs Cycle to help end childhood hunger.

Resources and Mentions:

· No Kid Hungry (nokidhungry.org): Share Our Strength’s No Kid Hungry campaign is ending child hunger in America by ensuring all children get the healthy food they need, every day.

· Root Cause Coalition: (rootcausecoalition.org) The Root Cause Coalition is a national, member-driven, nonprofit organization dedicated to addressing the root causes of health disparities by focusing on hunger and other social determinants leading to nationwide epidemic of preventable chronic health conditions.

· Krista Anderson is responsible for innovative planning of the prepared foods department programs, seasonal menu and recipe development, as well as purchasing and sourcing of ingredients for New Seasons Markets in the Portland, Oregon area. She focuses on stellar customer service and fiscal responsibility to support in-store merchandising, store openings and remodels, staff development as well as coaching and nurturing vendor/producer relationships. Prior to that, she was the Company Chef in charge of seasonal menu and recipe development to support established programs for all prepared foods departments including holiday and special event menus. She earned a bachelor’s degree from Bates College and associates degree from the New England Culinary Institute.

· New Seasons Market brings delicious, healthy food from local farmers, producers, ranchers and fisherman to the communities of Portland, Oregon. They provide the best mix of local, organic favorites and grocery classics. They are firmly committed to supporting the regional food economy, environmental stewardship, giving back to the local community, and providing a progressive workplace for staff to thrive. Store by store, they focus on building and nourishing the communities they serve, creating lasting relationships with their customers, staff and vendors.

· Hugh Mangum is the pitmaster and co-owner of Mighty Quinn’s New York barbeque. Fond memories of palate altering meals and a deep admiration for the soul of real barbeque have led Hugh on a personal quest for slow smoked perfection. Many years and copious piles of wood later, Mighty Quinnʼs New York barbeque represents Hugh's craft and his desire to make people happy eating slow smoked goodness. An avid cyclist and long-time No Kid Hungry Supporter, Magnum is veteran of Chefs Cycle.

· Mighty Quinn’s New York Barbeque takes a simple approach: source the best quality ingredients they can and don’t fuss with them too much. They cook barbeque the old school way with plenty of wood and time, adding just the right amount of salt and spice to let that lovely marriage of process and product evolve into something transcendent. They bring together the best of all great BBQ techniques to create something uniquely its own. The process begins with the best, all-natural meats and poultry, seasoned with perfect spice blends and then smoked with wood for many, many hours until the perfect harmony of smoke, flavor and time emerges. Their food is steeped in tradition but given new life. BBQ was created in the South but Mighty Quinn's Barbeque was born in New York!

· Ed Doyle has become a household name in the Boston hospitality scene for his work as a both chef and, now, as a consultant with RealFood Consulting, Inc. While Director of Culinary Operations at the Seaport Hotel and World Trade Center, the hotel’s restaurant Aura was named one of the Best New Restaurants in the U.S. That passion and drive are even stronger today as he helps new and existing foodservice businesses make success happen. Ed has been featured in Food and Wine, Restaurant Business, and Food Arts magazines. Away from the office, Ed works with non-profit groups to give back to the community. He gets his competitive fix from bike racing and cooking on the National BBQ Circuit as part of Team iQue, World Champions in 2009. Ed lives in Somerville, Massachusetts, with his partner Mary.

· RealFood Consulting, Inc. is a full-service consulting firm that has attended to the needs of the food & beverage industry since 1996. They design, develop, and open new restaurants as well as fix rebuild, reassess, and rediscover exiting concepts.

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Bringing the Love: Equity In Healthcare May 16, 2018

Show notes

What’s at the heart of healthcare disparities in America? In this episode of Add Passion and Stir, Grantmakers In Health (GIH) President and CEO Faith Mitchell and Washington Post Food and Dining Editor Joe Yonan talk about equity, the long-term effects of stress, and healthy cooking. “The interest in what we now call equity really started in the mid-80’s,” says Mitchell about the differences in health outcomes among ethnic and racial populations. “It’s many-pronged effort at this point. You have people in healthcare settings who are trying to equalize outcomes,” she shares. Yonan emphasizes diversity in his own work in the newsroom and recently released America The Great Cookbook, proceeds from which support No Kid Hungry. “The thing I think I’m proudest of about the book is the sheer diversity of the group of people in the book. It’s all walks of life, all colors, ages,” he says. “The same diversity I went for in the cookbook, I want to show up in the food coverage of the Washington Post.”

Well-known for his writing on the intersection of food and health and the value of cooking at home, Yonan believes, “People eat healthier food if they make it for themselves.” Mitchell, whose grandfather was a West-Indian chef and caterer, notes the importance of home cooking and family meals in her own life. “These days cooking at home feels very revolutionary,” she says. In both her personal and professional lives, Mitchell believes in the importance how you treat other people on a daily basis. “So much comes down to whether…you’re bringing love to that interaction or whether you’re bringing anger or hostility or stress,” she says. Inspired, Debbie Shore closes the conversation, “I’m going to show some love today!”

Share in this wide-ranging discussion about the effects of diversity, equity and healthy eating.

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You Can't Do It Alone: teamwork and Impact May 09, 2018

Show notes

How do social change-makers work together to make greater impact? In this episode of Add Passion & Stir, host Debbie Shore talks with KaBOOM! CEO James Siegal and DC Chef Mike Friedman (Red Hen, All-Purpose) about focusing on teamwork and community to help those in need. Siegal speaks of the marginalization of many neighborhood institutions and how successful nonprofits must bring these entities together. “You can’t do it alone… It takes everyone rowing in the same direction to make change happen,” he says. Friedman sees parallels to running successful restaurants. “I fell into cooking because I love the team mentality. Restaurants are a team sport… I was enamored with the idea of being a part of something that was bigger than me,” he recalls.

KaBOOM! leverages corporate funding to strengthen communities, building more than 3000 safe playspaces across the country for kids living in disadvantaged communities. Each playground build day brings together community partners and hundreds of local volunteers for a moving community experience. “If you want to get to a place where kids are better off, you need strong communities and strong communities are cohesive, safe, and they have a sense of pride,” says Siegal. For Friedman, giving back is part of the role of being a chef, an active member of his neighborhood, and a successful business owner. “My passions lie with children’s needs,” he says, and demonstrates this by supporting organizations like Share Our Strength’s No Kid Hungry campaign and March of Dimes.

Listen to this conversation about how teamwork can build strong communities and create lasting impact.

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