Merri Schwartz
Founder, Growing Chefs
Dear friends of Growing Chefs,
It is with true joy that I share the news that I’m stepping down as Chair of the Board of Growing Chefs. After six years as Executive Director and 11 years as Chair, it’s time to pass my well-worn seat to the next set of occupants.
The best news is that I’m stepping down for a darn good reason… I had a baby! My sweet babe was born in January of 2022, and although I plan to continue to serve on the Board of Directors and support the organization in every way, my focus in the near future will be nurturing my growing bean and learning to let others lead.
I am absolutely delighted to introduce Growing Chefs’ new Co-Chairs: Brent Mansfield and Ted Anderson. Many of you will have crossed paths with Brent and Ted in the classroom and at Growing Chefs events over the years. Both have sat on the board for four years but have been involved with the organization for much longer.
Brent Mansfield is an incredible educator, activist, and all around inspiring human. He is the Edible Education Teacher at Lord Roberts and the school-based lead for LunchLAB. Brent recently returned to teaching and has a long history of involvement in collaborative endeavours aimed at improving the food system, in schools and beyond. He sits on the Board of Growing Chefs and the Steering Committee of the BC Chapter of the Coalition for Healthy School Food. Brent is the former Director of the BC Food Systems Network and has completed a master's degree in Integrated Studies in Land and Food Systems.
I first met Brent back in 2009 when he co-chaired the Vancouver Food Policy Council, and we connected again through his role running the garden program at Grandview Elementary. He collaborated with Growing Chefs for many years before joining the board in 2018 and his perspective, expertise, and boundless enthusiasm have been invaluable.
Ted Anderson is a highly respected chef, culinary mentor, dad, and (in my opinion) has one of the biggest hearts around. Born and raised in North Vancouver, Ted began cooking at the age of 16 and never looked back. Over the years, he gathered experience travelling the world and working under chef mentors around Vancouver, including Chefs Don Letendre and David Hawksworth. These days, Ted works as the JOEY Restaurant Group’s Executive Chef of Multi-brand, and is tasked with creating cool new menu items and mentoring the group’s chefs.
I first met Ted when we both worked as young cooks at C Restaurant in 2005, and I’ve had the privilege to see him grow into the leader he is today. Ted was one of our very first classroom volunteers in 2007, and has supported Growing Chefs as a volunteer, a From Farms to Forks Gala contributor, and finally, by joining the board in 2018.
I have utmost confidence in Brent and Ted to take over as Co-Chairs, and I’m sure all of you will come to know and respect them as much as I do.
There’s one thing I’d like to address head on—they’re both white men. Let’s be up front about it! At Growing Chefs, we have committed to investing more deeply in justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion (JEDI) and to making these tenets the lens by which we view and filter every activity we plan and every decision we make. To appoint two white men to a leadership position in the organization might seem like a step backwards.
But let me assure you that Brent and Ted’s appointment was not made lightly. It was after careful consideration of their experience, abilities, insights, and their direct connections to the two key industries we serve—education and culinary—that we determined they were the two best people for the job. Both men are compassionate, humble, insightful, knowledgeable, and committed to JEDI. They see their role as Chairs as an opportunity to increase JEDI at Growing Chefs and to pave the way for a succession of more diverse Chairs in the future.
I’m incredibly proud of the work Brent and Ted have already done in their first few months of leadership, and I hope you’ll join me in wishing them all the best. I can’t wait to see more!
Sincerely,
Merri Schwartz
Founder, Growing Chefs
2021 Annual General Meeting
March 27th, 2022 at 1:00pm
Location: Online via Zoom
After our AGM, join us to learn more about commissary kitchens! What is a commissary kitchen, and what is their role in our community food systems? Learn from Amrit Maharaj at COHO Commissary Collective, Trixie Ling from Flavours of Hope, and Marc Wandler from Susgrainable about ghost kitchens, the strength of commissary communities, and barriers facing small food producers in cities like Vancouver.