“E
verything happens in the kitchen,” Arlita Miller said. “Cooking is so important for creating a sense of family. We cook, sit down together, and have a meal. All the while, we’re talking and bonding. It brings a sense of closeness.” For 14 years, much of Miller’s time has been spent in the kitchen at the Center’s 24-bed Transitional Living Program (TLP), a one-of-a-kind transitional residence for LGBT youth who don’t have homes of their own and have been turned away by their families. Youth can stay for up to 18 months while they develop skills, resources, and experience to live independently. Miller helps TLP residents learn about food budgeting, proper nutrition, food handling and safety, and, of course, cooking. “Some clients come in and don’t know how to turn on the stove because nobody ever showed them how to do it,” said Miller. “I’ve learned how to meet them where they are, emotionally and mentally, at the time they come here. They are learning skills every day that many of us take for granted.” Miller is responsible for budgeting and preparing meals for youth living at TLP as well as for homeless young people who dropin at the Center’s Youth Center on Highland. Last year, more than 81,000 meals were provided there. While Miller is in charge of the cooking, the youth often help out. “Some youth are learning as they go, others love to cook already, so I just assist,” said Miller. “I always have a back up plan, just in case. But they really can do anything. They are so talented.” Miller’s job at the Center is a perfect fit. After working as a waitress and in the restaurant business for 20 years, she wanted to do something more meaningful that helped youth. She started at the Center as a youth advocate until one day when the Center’s cook was out sick. Miller filled in and eventually transitioned to dietary coordinator full time.
• A rlita Miller shares her culinary skills with Center Board Member and celebrity chef Susan Feniger and Scream Queens cast members Austin and Aaron Rhodes.
“Some people are born to do this kind of work. I know that’s why I’m here,” she said. “Now each day I think about when I leave and get into my car, I get to go home. And they don’t. I try to remember that and do what I can to help them build better lives.” Like in most kitchens, eating is the best part.
Cooking is so important for creating a sense of family. We cook, sit down together, and have a meal. All the while, we’re talking and bonding. It brings a sense of closeness. “I know it’s good when I don’t hear anything but the clicking of forks on the plate,” said Miller. “Because with food, it’s not about the seasoning. It’s not the flavor. It’s the love that goes into it. You can taste the love.” Miller works to fit in food options that expose youth to meals beyond what you might expect at a typical homeless shelter. “We do cultural cuisine nights where clients get to cook their favorite meals from different cultures. We’ve done Chinese and Spanish food. Jambalaya is a favorite. Whenever
I make that, there’s none left. I work hard to give them that special meal,” said Miller. It was a cultural cuisine night recipe that sparked Miller’s next project: a cookbook. Miller helped a client make fish soup. They took a photo of it and she asked him to write up his recipe. Isiah’s Amazing Fish Soup became the first cookbook entry. Now Miller has collected more than 100 recipes, each named for the client who helped create them. The cookbook includes photos and stories about the origins of the finished recipes. Vegan and vegetarian sections are also in the works. Clients will be able to take a copy of the cookbook with them as they start their new lives after their time in TLP. Another story Miller shared shows how youth leaving the Center take much more than a cookbook with them. One client was turning 18 during her time at the TLP and had never had a birthday celebration. The other residents wanted to bake her a cake. “They made her a cake of her favorite colors: pink and turquoise. And they wanted to do it all. I was just there to make sure it was safe,” said Miller. “It was her first birthday that anybody had ever celebrated with her. When she came in and saw the cake, her face said it all. That moment, that appreciation, reminds me what I’m doing here.”
Spring 2016
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