Isaiah - Root Community Kitchen Team Member

After completing the training program in 2019, Isaiah went on to work in a local Salem seasonal spot, where he gained more skills and experience. He is a current member of Root's Community Kitchen Team, the powerhouse behind Root's retail catering and community meal initiatives, fulfilling daily school lunch orders, assisting with catering events, and preparing over 700 community meals each week for individuals across the North Shore!

“Before I started working in the Root Community Kitchen, I had never volunteered or experienced working in the community, so this was the first time I’ve worked in an organization that directly supports the community. I go to My Brother’s Table every week, and seeing that our food helps other people who need it is a really good feeling. Whenever we go to My Brother’s Table, someone there will usually help us with unloading the food, or thank us for coming, and it’s nice to see that what we do matters to others.”

“I like working in the culinary field, and I like what I do right now, but I’m not sure if it’s something that I’ll be doing for the rest of my life. Right now, I’m looking into taking a phlebotomy training course which will take a few months to complete. It’s 40 hours of classwork and 40 hours of field training. It’s something new and exciting, and it also pays really well, so that’s something I’m excited about doing in the near future.“

Isaiah likes to cook at home, too, and makes a lot of pasta alfredo and steak.“Steak is probably my favorite dish to make in general. One thing I’ve gotten better at over the years is learning how well done the steak is just by touch, rather than using a thermometer. I had a lot of practice cooking steak when I worked at the Lobster Shanty, and now I feel like I can cook steak based on feel or intuition, which is something that comes with time.”