Mens Kitchen on THE MENU
Plans are underway to set up a Mens Kitchen in Castle Hill to teach older men basic cooking skills. The new venture in the Hills will be the latest set up by the Men’s Kitchen charity to meet a growing need.
President of the Men’s Kitchen Association Peter Watson said good nutrition and strong social connections are critical to promote longevity and good health.
“It has been proven that people live longer when they feel more connected. We are what we eat, so learning to cook and making new mates along the way is a win-win.”
He said after retirement some men lose their sense of purpose, in some cases they lose their partners or for health reasons of their partner taking on the cooking for the household.
“In the Hills District, there are over 15,000 men aged 60 or more, many of whom have never ventured into the kitchen.”
He helped start the first Men’s kitchen in 2016 in Forestville to help his father who had never stepped into a kitchen before.
“My mother died when I was in my 20s and my father married again but his second wife died when he was in his 80s.”
Peter started learning to cook at a carers class run by NSW Health but when that closed down five of the men and their instructor moved to Forestville.
The Men’s Kitchen Peter realised the need for such classes when demand grew. And they were able to fill classes in just a couple of hours.
Each session runs from 11am to 2pm. Classes are up to 10 men who work together in pairs to prepare a two course-meal under the guidance of three experienced volunteer instructors. Everyone chooses the recipe they would like to prepare and once cooking is completed, everyone sits down together to chat and enjoy the meal.
There are now 22 Men’s Kitchen groups Peter and Alison setting up a local Men’s Kitchen (including Canberra and the Gold Coast) operating with 200 men learning to cook and 100 instructors. Everyone involved is a volunteer.
Annual membership is $40 which includes a personal apron and a cook book.
Peter has been recruiting locally to find volunteers to help run the Castle Hill Men’s Kitchen at Wesley Uniting Church in Showground Rd Castle Hill with the aim of starting classes in September. The leadership team needs to be in place soon. It needs a district manager, a treasurer and an admin person to start with, then it needs six instructors. All will receive training and be mentored through the process.
Alison Johnson from Castle Hill is keen to volunteer. “I was looking for a voluntary role and something to do. I wanted to be part of something that was meaningful.”
To find out more and join the leadership team for Castle Hill call Peter Watson on 0411 476 532 or email [email protected] or there is the website menskitchen.org.au.
