Valley Parents Correspondent
Published: 5/20/2021 12:36:08 PM
Modified: 5/20/2021 12:36:05 PM
WOODSTOCK — On the last Wednesday in April, Change the World Kids members and a handful of volunteers delivered their last 140 quarts of fresh, homemade soup to community members in Woodstock, Bridgewater and White River Junction.
In collaboration with the Ottauquechee Health Center, the North Chapel Universalist Church, Upper Valley chef Ken Woodhead and community volunteer Michael Zsoldos, the Woodstock-based group has helped make and distribute soup to elderly and at-risk neighbors each week since last December.
From the heart of Woodhead and Zsoldos, the Soup Kit Project has been an opportunity for middle and high school students to volunteer and build community, Change the World Kids Facilitator Karen Ganey said.
“We really wanted to meet the need in the hardest of times, which is the cold months of winter,” Ganey said.
In years past, Change the World Kids hosted a weekly Anti-Cabin Fever Dinner every Wednesday at the North Chapel Universalist Church in Woodstock in order to gather as a community over food. The dinners were cut short in 2020 and were not slated to happen in 2021. The Soup Kit Project was the perfect substitute during these times, Anti-Cabin Fever Dinners Chair Adi Wilson said.
“ACF Dinners are such a big and important aspect to our group, so we were unsure how we could safely replace them,” Wilson, 17, a junior at Woodstock Union High School, said. “Luckily, the Soup Kit project came together and every Tuesday, we make soup in the North Chapel Universalist kitchen. It is so nice to be back in the kitchen working together to create something that will benefit many.”
In December renovations were occurring in the church kitchen, so approximately 70 gallons of soup were made in the kitchen at Billings Farm & Museum during a three-hour slot Tuesday afternoons. The Soup Kit Project grew and found its way back to the North Chapel Universalist Society, where it doubled its soup output, increased its deliveries to twice a week on Wednesdays and Fridays and expanded deliveries to Bridgewater and White River Junction.
Change the World Kids members help Woodhead cut and peel vegetables, donated by Willing Hands and Veggie Van Go, while also learning how to work in a kitchen and interacting with Woodhead and three regular volunteers from the church. It is an intergenerational affair, Wilson said.
“One of the best things about the ACF Dinners was that kids got to learn how to be in a kitchen like that,” Wilson said. “A lot of cooking and teaching opportunities.”
Wilson had attended the Anti-Cabin Fever Dinners with her family when her two older brothers were members of the organization before she joined Change the World Kids five years ago. She now helps deliver meals every Wednesday and Friday.
“Delivering as part of the Soup Kit Project has to be one of my favorite parts about Change the World Kids so far for a community aspect,” Wilson said. “It’s a really rewarding experience to see the smiles and hear the thank yous.”
Along with building community, the Anti-Cabin Fever Dinners were also one of the biggest fundraisers for Change the World Kids, funding the group’s annual trip to Costa Rica.
Partnering with Fundacion Conservacionista Costarricense and Monteverde Conservation League, Change the World Kids established “Bosque para Siempre,” or “Forever Forest,” a migratory corridor for birds. They now go for two weeks each summer to plant trees in order to restore and conserve these lands. Wilson noted that though Change the World Kids was unable to go last year, she is glad they were able to help communities in need here in the Upper Valley with the Soup Kit Project, and that she hopes they will be able to go again this June.
“Going to Costa Rica in 2018 was my first service trip, so it was a whole new world for me,” Wilson said. “It was so amazing because Costa Rica is such a beautiful country as well. The people we were working with were super nice and so helpful. It was an interesting learning experience.”
Change the World Kids will now focus on a no-till “justice gardens,” growing thousands of pounds of fresh vegetables for local food shelves.
“Food gives us an opportunity to connect with the community and people in need,” Wilson said. “Food is the best way. Also, it promotes our message of the importance of the environment too.”
To learn more about Change the World Kids, visit changetheworldkids.org.