New Haven's Cityseed Sanctuary Kitchen Named Jacques Pépin Foundation Grant Awardee

NEW HAVEN, CT — The Jacques Pépin Foundation "proudly" announced Monday that CitySeed Sanctuary Kitchen is one of its Summer 2025 Grant Awardees.

One of 17 recipients this round, CitySeed operates a Culinary Training Program that supports professional culinary development for aspiring chefs, a nationally recognized social enterprise food business that offers a diverse array of global cuisines available for purchase in a variety of places, and community-based culinary programming.

CitySeed will use their grant to fund general operating costs including additional staff capacity, training materials, and translation and interpretation services. In addition to the $10,000 grant, CitySeed will receive JPF branded aprons for their students and a group membership to the Foundation.

Founded in 2016 by the Pépin family, the JPF strives to enrich lives and strengthen communities through the power of culinary education. The JPF empowers and inspires professional chefs, home cooks, and community kitchens nationwide by sharing Jacques' legacy of culinary education. In 2019, the JPF became a grant-making organization, and in the last seven years the Foundation has given over $1.8M to over 80 different non-profit, community-based, culinary arts training programs that offer life skills and culinary training to individuals with barriers to employment. The JPF mission and vision are rooted firmly in the belief that culinary skills training leads to increased self-confidence, better health, and employment and career opportunities.

“The JPF’s mission is realized in part by supporting programs that create opportunities through culinary training, and giving grants to these important, impressive, local organizations,” Rollie Wesen, Executive Director of the JPF, said.

"CitySeed’s Sanctuary Kitchen is a remarkable program that uses the universal language of food to build bridges, create opportunity, and uplift refugee and immigrant chefs. Through paid culinary training, professional development, and community events, Sanctuary Kitchen empowers participants to share their cultural heritage while gaining the skills needed to succeed in the food industry," Wesen said. "This initiative not only celebrates the richness of global culinary traditions: it provides economic opportunity and fosters human connection. We deeply admire this work and are proud to support them."

Community-based culinary arts training programs are invited to apply to the Jacques Pépin Foundation Grant Program for Community-Based Culinary Arts Training Programs throughout the year and are awarded twice: one in summer and one in winter. Applications for the Winter Grant Program are open through October.

"Support from the Jacques Pépin Foundation catalyzes Sanctuary Kitchen's work to nurture the culinary careers of immigrant and refugee chefs," Executive Director of CitySeed Sanctuary Kitchen Sarah Miller, said. "It's an honor and a delight to implement Chef Pépin's vision of culinary arts education as a gateway to opportunity."

About the Jacques Pépin Foundation

Founded in 2016, the Jacques Pépin Foundation (JPF) was created to honor Jacques’ generosity and passion for sharing his culinary knowledge. The JPF’s work is focused on teaching and inspiring all people to cook. Among our programs, we provide hundreds of hours of free instructional videos, available to all, through social media channels, YouTube and our website to teach and enhance cooking skills, and still more to JPF members with access to recipes and videos from renowned and inspiring chefs through our JPF members’ Video Recipe Book Cook with Jacques Pépin & Friends. Our existing Community Kitchens Support program provides grants, cookbook libraries, and other resources nationwide for workforce development, designed for individuals who are under-resourced, enabling them to achieve success through employment in the hospitality industry.

The Foundation works with existing Community Kitchens to build their curricula, train aspiring hospitality professionals, and foster a supportive community, hope, and opportunity for a brighter future. The JPF is a 501(c)3 charitable organization. To support the JPF or learn more, visit the website here.