Special to IFN
The Jacques Pépin Foundation (JPF) announced Monday that FeedNC is one 17 grant recipients for Summer 2025.
FeedNC offers a free 10-week culinary training program where students gain hands-on meal experience at the organization’s restaurant-style community dining program. FeedNC will use their grant to support student incentives, breaking down barriers to program completion and making participation more viable for students.
In addition to the $10,000 grant, FeedNC will receive JPF branded aprons for their students and a group membership to the Foundation.
“FeedNC is overjoyed and deeply grateful for the generosity of the Jacques Pépin Foundation,” said Gracie Allen, Feed NC grant coordinator. “This support will allow us to provide financial incentives to our culinary students as they participate in the program, decreasing their economic burden as they invest in their education and future.”
Founded in 2016 by the Pépin family, JPF strives to enrich lives and strengthen communities through the power of culinary education. The foundation empowers and inspires professional chefs, home cooks, and community kitchens nationwide by sharing Jacques’ legacy of culinary education.
In 2019, JPF became a grant-making organization, and in the last seven years the foundation has given over $1.8 million to over 80 different non-profit, community-based, culinary arts training programs that offer life skills and culinary training to individuals with barriers to employment.
“The JPF’s mission is realized in part by supporting programs that create opportunities through culinary training, and giving grants to these important, impressive, local organizations,” says Rollie Wesen, the foundation’s executive director. “FeedNC’s Culinary Job Training Program exemplifies how thoughtful, community-driven culinary education can change lives. In just 10 weeks, comprising up to 200 hours of hands-on kitchen instruction, students earn ServSafe and field certifications, prepare real meals in Donoghue’s Open Door, and receive personalized job-readiness coaching. In 2024, FeedNC achieved an exceptional 100 percent employment rate upon graduation, a testament to the program’s life-changing impact.”
In addition to FeedNC, Summer 2025 JPF Grants were awarded to TASK (Trenton, N.J.), The Inspiration Kitchen Lott Industries (Cleveland, Ohio), FeedMore WNY (Buffalo, N.Y.), Feeding South Florida (Pembroke, Fla.), Project Renewal (New York, N.Y.), CitySeed Sanctuary Kitchen (New Haven, Conn.), Life’s Kitchen (Boise, Idaho), Second Helpings (Indianapolis, Ind.), Philabundance (Philadelphia, Pa.), Fulfill (Neptune, N.J.), Good Work (Austin, Texas), UMOM (Phoenix, Ariz.), Columbia Ability Alliance (Kennewick, Wash.), Salvation Army Golden State (San Francisco, Calif.), Inspiration Corporation (Chicago, Ill.), and Drive Change NYC (Brooklyn, N.Y.).
Community-based culinary arts training programs are invited to apply to the Jacques Pépin Foundation Grant Program for Community-Based Culinary Arts Training Programs throughout the year and are awarded twice: one in summer and one in winter. Applications for the Winter Grant Program are open through October.
About the Jacques Pépin Foundation
Founded in 2016, the Jacques Pépin Foundation (JPF) was created to honor Jacques’ generosity and passion for sharing his culinary knowledge. The JPF’s work is focused on teaching and inspiring all people to cook. Among our programs, we provide hundreds of hours of free instructional videos, available to all, through social media channels, YouTube and our website to teach and enhance cooking skills, and still more to JPF members with access to recipes and videos from renowned and inspiring chefs through our JPF members’ Video Recipe Book Cook with Jacques Pépin & Friends. Our existing Community Kitchens Support program provides grants, cookbook libraries, and other resources nationwide for workforce development, designed for individuals who are under-resourced, enabling them to achieve success through employment in the hospitality industry. The Foundation works with existing Community Kitchens to build their curricula, train aspiring hospitality professionals, and foster a supportive community, hope, and opportunity for a brighter future. The JPF is a 501(c)3 charitable organization. To support the JPF or learn more visit https://jp.foundation.