The Salvation Army in Fort Frances Offers Cooking Lessons for Clients Experiencing Disabilities

Since joining The Salvation Army, Community and Family Services Coordinator, Ryan Daw, has been the driving force behind a few new programs in Fort Frances, Ont. One of his most successful initiatives has been a cooking class for clients experiencing disabilities.

“I wanted to do a cooking course to teach them life skills, to learn how to cook, be more independent, and push forward.”

Ryan leads the program. He credits his previous experience of working in homeless shelters for giving him the skills to know how to cook and now to be able to teach this skill to others.

“I wanted to do a cooking course to teach them life skills, to learn how to cook, be more independent, and push forward,” Ryan said.

The lessons take place at Front Street Manor, a location that offers transitional housing run by Riverside Health. They were excited to let The Salvation Army use their premises for this great initiative.

The program runs twice a month, and it averages between 10 to 12 clients in attendance each session. For each lesson, Ryan tries to give all his students personalized responsibilities according to their needs.

“We’ve got clients that are in wheelchairs, we have clients who have mobility issues, clients that are not as dexterous, so we try to match it with their personalities. For instance, for a fajita night, one person was okay with chopping lettuce, while another one cooked the ground beef. Depending on their skill set, we just sort of push forward with that,” Ryan said.

“Thank you so much for teaching me these little life lessons so that I can make these meals.”

After each session, clients not only leave with a new skill but also with some extra ingredients to put their skills to the test at home. This way they can slowly incorporate new meals that they can make for themselves when they are on their own.

“I’ve had clients come up to me and tell me, ‘I never thought about cooking like this before. Thank you so much for teaching me these little life lessons so that I can make these meals.’” They have been ecstatic about learning,” Ryan shared.

For the time being, Ryan plans to keep this program going for as long as funds permit it. He hopes the cooking classes continue for years to come.

“It’s just been a fantastic experience. I love working with the clients. They’re all wonderful people,” Ryan added.

By Juan Romero