Each year, one or two of the community cooking class series from SFC’s The Happy Kitchen/La Cocina Alegre® use our Cooking After Cancer curriculum. Those series include all of the healthy tips from our standard series, plus more information on digestion, blood sugar control, inflammation, nutrient density, and other topics that are especially important in cancer survivorship.

Many cancer survivors are overwhelmed with warnings about what they shouldn’t eat, and we regularly hear from participants that they appreciate a chance to think about all of the good things that they can enjoy, and can prepare in quick, simple steps.

In our Cooking After Cancer series this spring, we worked with some community partners to recruit three student interpreters from Austin Community College’s American Sign Language program. They reviewed the curriculum and recipes in advance and worked with faculty and mentors to prepare for each class. We were thrilled that, with their help, we could share this valuable program with cancer survivors in the Deaf community as well.

One participant shared:

"I am a Stage 2 Breast Cancer Survivor of 2 1/2 years. As I move on from chemo and radiation, I search for all things that bring me joy and health. I came across Sustainable Food Center and am so glad I took the 6-week series. Sure, I could learn some recipes online, but it is no substitute to learning with other Breast Cancer Sisters. Their fight to stay strong through healthy eating is empowering. It has been awesome to learn the different kitchen gadgets to make food preparation easier, to learn economical ways eating healthier and being educated on reading labels. The visual aid of actually seeing how much sodium a person eats is astounding with comparing milligrams of salt per glass tubes.

We make healthy cooking hard. They not only show you how easy it is, but they teach you "how to fish" by sending home the ingredients to apply what you have learned, which makes you realize how doable and habit forming healthy eating is. I love the teachers and their personable approach of sharing their knowledge. I wholeheartedly believe these series will not only make an impact on Breast Cancer survivors but in the Deaf community. This team and the interpreters we had worked hard together to make this an enriching experience!"

Many thanks to our facilitators, interpreters, and participants for making this class such a success!