2017 Annual Report

ten years

of inspiring possibilities through

creating

and sharing h e a lt h y

food

Dear Friends, April 2018 As The Sylvia Center enters its second decade, we are taking time to reflect on the impact of our work.

Together, our Board of Directors and staff are putting our students’ voices first. We are committed to reach and teach more young people about healthful and delicious food, so they can build confidence and strong habits through cooking. It is not just about food; it is about connections to opportunities that make a brighter future.

We work in partnership with community-based organizations that serve high-need communities in the five boroughs of New York City and Columbia County. Whether it is in a community center kitchen in public housing or our wood-burning stove on the farm—we believe that everyone deserves fresh, affordable food, and that the best way to enjoy it is to be able to prepare it yourself.

Chef Instructor Jayquan Burch and Program Director Samantha Pagan with youth students in the Cooks for Health Program at the Boulevard Community Center in East New York, Brooklyn.

Fresh Beginnings This report details the accomplishments of The Sylvia Center in 2017. Through our programs, students learned how to prepare fresh, affordable foods. They worked with chef instructors who demonstrated real cooking techniques while creating tasty and healthful meals. And to multiply our effectiveness, 25 of our trained Teen Apprentices taught basic cooking skills to 895 young students in summer camp programs across New York City. In 2017, we served 2,242 students in New York City and 1,527 students in Columbia County.

In 2017, we said farewell to our pioneering Executive Director of the past eight years, Anna Hammond. The power of her work can be seen in the following pages. She has prepared us for the journey ahead and we are grateful for her contributions.

The Sylvia Center works with vibrant young women and men to unleash their own potential. It is magical to watch them grow, gain knowledge and skills, absorb lessons and ideas—and then run with it. Beyond the skills they gain in the kitchen, they are poised to become part of the next generation of healthy food advocates, or maybe even food entrepreneurs and leaders in the culinary space. Not every student of ours will pursue one of these paths, but wherever they choose to go, we know they will leave our program able to make meals for themselves that provide the fuel for their dreams.

Since our founding, The Sylvia Center has worked with more than 20,000 students. We are proud of their achievements and humbled by the lessons they’ve taught us—about the power of cooking to realize one’s own potential, connect families, and transform lives.

We are so grateful to our donors, Board of Directors, volunteers, staff, and many partners, for their ongoing generosity, commitment, and enthusiasm.

Please join us as we grow to meet the needs of the next generation—because it really can start in the kitchen! Thank you for your support!

We welcome Jennifer John as our new Executive Director. Spearheading the transition into our next decade, Jennifer brings a strong program focus along with years of experience building sustainable organizations. We look forward to continued growth and deeper impact in the communities we serve.

On the cover: Sweet peppers just picked from the Learning Garden at Katchkie Farm in Kinderhook; a youth student dices cucumbers at the Patterson Community Center in the South Bronx; youth students show off their salad at the Patterson Community Center.

2 Mission

Liz Neumark

Founder and Board Chair

Mission 3

WHAT WE DO The mission of The Sylvia Center is to inspire young people and their families to establish independent healthy eating habits — so that they may lead healthy and productive lives.

Through our programs, young people learn essential skills in the kitchen, gain confidence through this process, and make better choices for their own health, now and in the future. Young people are applying the skills they learn in cooking class to other areas of their life and becoming advocates for healthy eating.

To increase our impact and ensure sustainability, we train teens, young adults, and community partners to implement healthy cooking programs. Through intensive learning, coaching and mentorship, our trainees learn to teach our curriculum, develop classroom management skills, and promote healthy eating habits.

Teens dice squash and chop kale in the Healthy Food for All Teen program at Hudson High School, Hudson.

OUr students • Learn essential skills in the kitchen, • Gain confidence through cooking

so they can cook simple, healthy meals at home.

and doing something that’s good for them and

their families.

• Make better choices

for their own health, now and in the future.

• Apply skills they learn in cooking class—like

teamwork, problem solving and time

management—to other areas of their life.

• Become advocates for healthy eating

by teaching others, demonstrating leadership

in their own communities.

The IMPACT of the Cooks for Health program:

80%

of students complete the program and improve their diet by eating more vegetables

66%

achieve significant improvement in self-efficacy in the kitchen

Youth students prep ingredients for lunch with Program Director Jenn So as part of a week-long Young Chefs Farm Camp at Katchkie Farm in Kinderhook.

4 Whatwedo

Whatwedo 5

our history 2007

• The Sylvia Center (TSC) at Katchkie Farm is founded by Liz Neumark and Chaim Wachsberger in memory of their daughter Sylvia. 200 children visit.

2008

• TSC's one-time afterschool classes begin in New York City.

Impact

2009

73

Upstate

590

Total

663

students served

2015

817

Upstate

855

Total

1,672

• In partnership with Rachael Ray’s Yum-o! Organization and The Mayor’s Fund to Advance New York City, our youth program is piloted in New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) community centers.

Impact

669

Total

1,298

City

758

Upstate

630

Total

1,388

students served

City

865

Upstate

842

Total

1,707

students served

• Upstate, in-school multi-week Seed to Plate program is piloted in Columbia County.

6 OurHistory

City

1,170

Upstate

Total

1,400 2,500

students served

2016

City

Upstate

Total

2,040 1,494 3,534

students served

• In NYC, the Teen Apprenticeship expands to two cohorts, in Brooklyn and the Bronx.

• Upstate, with funding from Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation, TSC launches Healthy Food for All, a multi-week healthy cooking and fresh food distribution program in Hudson after-school programs.

Impact

2017

City

2,324

Upstate

1,694

Total

4,018

students served

• In NYC, TSC’s “train-the-trainer” method gains momentum through training partnerships with Green City Force’s Farm Food Educators and West Harlem Group Assistance.

• Upstate, Healthy Food for All continues teaching in Hudson and expands to Germantown to pilot a curriculum initiative with second grade teachers.

• In NYC, as NYCHA transitions community center management, TSC establishes new partnerships with Grand Street Settlement, Harlem Children’s Zone, St. Nick’s Alliance, Graham Wyndham, and Green City Force.

Impact

1,100

Upstate

• In NYC, TSC programs expand to 10 sites, serving all 5 boroughs. TSC partners with ExpandED Schools in a new Teen Apprenticeship to train a cohort of 25 high school students who then teach healthy cooking to day campers in the Bronx.

Impact

students served

• In NYC, TSC pilots Cooking Together family program.

Impact

2013

629

Upstate

• NYC programs shift completely to serve children in the communities where they live, based in NYCHA community centers in Harlem, Brooklyn, Manhattan, and the Bronx.

Two teen programs are piloted: NYCHA teen program at Drew Hamilton Community Center and a program for pregnant teens at Inwood House.

Impact

2012

City

City

• Upstate, Seed to Plate expands to 6 program cycles, and the farm hosts 48 full-day Fresh Food programs.

students served

• One-time classes become a 6-week course for every student.

2011

Impact

• The farm hosts 30 full-day Fresh Food programs.

City

• In NYC, youth, teen, and family classes are offered at 6 community centers, 5 days a week.

• Upstate, Seed to Plate program expands to 3 sites.

• TSC begins offering youth programs at 2 NYC public schools.

Impact

2010

City

2014

Total

1,089 2,259

Impact

Total Cumulative Impact Since 2007

City

Upstate

2,242 1,527

Total

3,769

23,008

students served

students served

students served

OurHistory 7

New York City Programs In 2017, our New York City programs provided classes for over 2,200 youth, teen, and family participants across the five boroughs. We also continued long-standing partnership programs with Green City Force, NYU Langone Orthopedic Hospital, and GrowNYC. TSC’s direct service programs in New York City take place primarily during after-school hours, and are implemented in three strategic formats: • We provide direct service cooking programs in high need communities, through the Cooks for

Health program in partnership with community-based organizations. Classes are for youth, teens and families, are led by trained chef instructors and assistants, and have a student-to-teacher ratio of 5:1. In class, students learn basic cooking skills and the principles of healthy eating through hands-on experiences with fresh, whole foods.

• We train and mentor teens so they can become teachers and healthy food advocates in their own

communities, through our Teen Apprenticeship program in partnership with ExpandED Schools and numerous community-based organizations in Brooklyn and the Bronx.

• We train educators and like-minded organizations to implement our curriculum on their own—

through an intensive “train the trainer” method that equips and coaches others to teach TSC’s curriculum to their constituents, using program toolkits and hands-on lessons. In 2017 we provided trainings to Green City Force and West Harlem Group Assistance.

2017 NYC Program Highlights • 770 students completed the Cooks for Health course in

community centers spanning the five boroughs.

• In the spring, 50 Teen Apprentices from the Bronx and

Brooklyn embarked on a 60-hour apprenticeship to learn cooking and then how to teach cooking, transforming from inexperienced culinary students to knowledgeable, confident teachers. In the summer, 25 apprentices went on to teach healthy cooking to 895 summer campers.

• Thanks to a major gift from Trudy Elbaum Gottesman and

Robert Gottesman, we established a new Cooks for Health residency at the Howard Houses Community Center in Brownsville, Brooklyn.

• We continued our fruitful collaboration with Green City

Force, a service corps organization that works with young adult NYCHA residents to prepare them for careers in clean energy and sustainable agriculture. 12 Green City Force service members completed TSC’s 8-week training course to become Farm Food Educators at four active urban farms on NYCHA properties in Brooklyn and Harlem. The training prepared Farm Food Educators to train fellow GCF service members in what they learned, and lead healthy cooking demos on GCF’s NYCHA urban farms.

• Thanks to a grant from Local Initiatives Support Corporation

(LISC), TSC partnered with West Harlem Group Assistance to provide a 6-week train-the-trainer program over the summer to trainees from the WHGA Food Hub and Northern Manhattan Perinatal Group.

• TSC continued our longtime partnership with two patient

Green City Force service members and Program Director Samantha Pagan celebrated the completion of their Farm Food Educator training with an Iron-Chef style cooking competition at the Bay View Houses NYCHA Farm in Canarsie, Brooklyn.

8 NewYorkCity

programs at NYU Langone Orthopedic Hospital: the Hospital for Joint Diseases and the Celiac Disease Program, reaching a total of 60 participants in 2017. Both programs are paired with TSC Chef Instructors who hold high-level expertise in the specific needs of the pediatric patients we work with, because our classes are not only health supportive; they have become essential components of each patient’s healthcare program.

• Through our longtime partnership with GrowNYC’s Seed to

Plate Program, TSC taught healthy cooking lessons to 470 4th and 5th graders in the Bronx.

Cooks for Health youth students sort fresh herbs in class at the Riis Settlement Community Center in Long Island City, Queens.

Cooks for Health Program Site Partners in 2017 Drew Hamilton Community Center, managed by Children's Village, West Harlem Grand Street Community Center at 80 Pitt, managed by Grand Street Settlement, Lower East Side Throgg’s Neck Community Center, managed by Kipp’s Bay Boys & Girls Club, Throgg’s Neck, Bronx Red Hook Miccio Community Center, managed by Good Shepherd Services, Red Hook, Brooklyn Williamsburg Community Center, managed by Grand Street Settlement, Bushwick, Brooklyn Boulevard Houses Community Center, managed by CAMBA, East New York, Brooklyn Howard Houses Community Center, managed by CAMBA, Brownsville, Brooklyn Riis Settlement Community Center, managed by Jacob Riis Settlement, Long Island City, Queens West Brighton Community Center, managed by United Activities Unlimited, West Brighton, Staten Island

NewYorkCity 9

Teen Apprenticeship 2017 marked the third year of the Teen Apprenticeship program in collaboration with ExpandED Schools. Through a sixty-hour training program, 50 teens (aged 16-18) in Brooklyn and the Bronx acquired a strong foundation in culinary arts, skill sharing, and job readiness. Through the winter months, students spent class time in professional grade kitchens learning food safety, how to read and follow recipes, and kitchen etiquette. In the spring, they used their new culinary skills and the guidance of their Chef Instructors to create a simplified curriculum that they then practiced teaching to each other. After the peer teaching phase, students were sent out in groups with mentors to practice teaching lessons to youth in after-school programs at local community centers. By the summer, all graduating Apprentices were ready to take on leadership roles in paid internships teaching cooking classes to day campers in NYC community centers.

The Teen Apprenticeship program is our longest and most involved program, requiring that Apprentices commit to attending four months of 2-days-a-week classes, fieldwork and practice teaching, and finally their 6-week summer teaching internships. It’s no wonder that Apprentices experience tremendous growth over nine months: by completing the apprenticeship, they gain deep skills, experience, and confidence in becoming role models and teachers to youth within their own communities.

The Teen Apprenticeship Program is funded, in part, by ExpandED Schools through funds administered by the New York City Department of Youth and Community Development in Partnership with the City Council.

Longtime corporate partner FOODMatch continued their visionary support of our teen programs through the creation of a new scholarship: The Growing Communities of Healthy Eaters Award Program. These awards recognize and honor the accomplishments of some of our most inspiring and committed students, who have excelled in TSC’s healthy cooking programs and then taken what they have learned to better both themselves and the lives of those around them. Recipients receive a financial award to support their future education and experiences in culinary arts, teaching, health, and personal fulfillment. In 2017, award recipients included: Kenneth Sookoo (Cooks for Health Teen program graduate, Grand Street Settlement, Lower East Side) and Maria Contreras (graduate of the 2016 Teen Apprenticeship program in the Bronx, and Chef Assistant at Drew Hamilton Community Center, Harlem).

According to our Apprentices, many of their young campers were initially hesitant to try new fruits and vegetables, but they became more willing to try new foods as the summer progressed. By the end of the summer, the campers were asking for second and third helpings and were excited to take class recipes home to their families.

For the Apprentices themselves, the program’s impact is obvious and deep: they are excited about food in a new way, and have changed their overall feelings towards food. They have changed their eating habits both at home and when eating out. They are discussing food with their friends and are becoming aware of the importance of food in their lives. Some have set new goals for themselves to continue to college or pursue culinary arts careers.

Teen Apprenticeship Program Partners in 2017 ExpandED Schools The Pinkerton Foundation Green School: An Academy for Environmental Careers Bronx Bridges High School Comprehensive Model School Project, MS/HS 327 Good Shepherd Services School for Tourism and Hospitality High School University Heights High School East Side Settlement Houses New Settlement St. Nick’s Alliance

Kenneth Sookoo (above) and Maria Contreras (below) speak at the Art of Cooking Gala on October 26th.

Looking forward to 2018 • The Sylvia Center’s Cooks for Health program is piloting a new teen-focused strategy which will

bring the Teen Apprenticeship method—teaching teens, who then teach youth—to the Cooks for Health year-round program. Teen-focused pilots will launch in 2018 in Long Island City, Queens and on the Lower East Side.

• TSC’s Teen Apprenticeship program is training student cohorts in Brooklyn and the Bronx again,

with a revamped curriculum that includes an increased focus on job readiness as well as culinary enrichment experiences outside of the classroom.

• TSC is partnering for a fourth year with Green City Force to provide Farm Food Educator trainings Teen Apprentice guides a youth student in practicing knife skills at the Patterson Community Center in the South Bronx.

10 NewYorkCity

to service members who will lead healthy cooking demos at GCF’s growing network of urban farms on NYCHA properties throughout NYC.

NewYorkCity 11

Columbia county Programs The Sylvia Center’s programs in Columbia County engage youth in every step of the story of food from seed to plate, so they experience the joys of growing, preparing, and sharing fresh food together.

The Sylvia Center at Katchkie Farm’s on-farm and community-based programs in Columbia County served over 1,500 youth, teens, adults, families, and community members in 2017. 92% of participants came from Columbia County, and 8% from neighboring counties and the New York City metro region.

Full-day Fresh Food Comes from the Farm programs at Katchkie Farm start with a tour of the greenhouses and farm. Students are encouraged to touch, smell, and taste from among the over 150 varieties of edible vegetables, fruits, herbs and flowers being cultivated in the dedicated Learning Garden. Later, participants work on a garden project before moving to the outdoor kitchen to cook and eat a healthy, farm-fresh lunch while talking about what they have learned and enjoying each other’s company. As importantly, they get to enjoy a beautiful day in nature, a delicious meal they’ve prepared themselves, collaboration, and new friendships.

The Healthy Food For All program is a five-year project launched in 2016 with support from the Columbia County Healthy Food for All initiative, a fund of the Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation. Healthy Food for All (HFFA) works to improve the health of low-income children and their families throughout Columbia County while strengthening the County’s local food system. HFFA was first piloted in the Hudson City School District in Fall 2016, and in 2017 expanded to the Germantown Central School District. In Hudson, HFFA provides 6-week and 12-week Cooks for Health courses for family and teen participants (respectively), along with weekly Fresh Food Shares of regionally sourced fresh produce, that participants take home to use in practicing the skills and recipes they’ve learned in class. Fall 2017, HFFA expanded to the Germantown Central School District to pilot a curriculum initiative which will train second grade teachers in healthy cooking lessons they can teach in their own classrooms. The ultimate goal of the HFFA program is to pilot healthy cooking initiatives in all six of Columbia County’s school districts.

Students demonstrate their whisking prowess in the Healthy Food for All Family program hosted at Valley Variety in Hudson.

Fresh Food Program students taste herbs with Garden Educator Kristen Jovanelly in the Learning Garden at Katchkie Farm.

2017 Columbia County Program Highlights: • The Healthy Food for All program delivered twenty cycles of 6-week cooking classes for youth,

teens, and families in the Hudson City School District, reaching a total of 126 students.

• 810 students participated in 31 Fresh Food Comes from the Farm programs in 2017.

• Thanks to a grant from the Hudson River Bank & Trust Co. Foundation, we were able to continue

offering Transportation Scholarships to support the participation of 403 youth in Fresh Food programs. To date, 1,324 students have been able to visit the farm as a result of these scholarships and we plan to continue offering them in the future.

• Thanks to the skilled cultivation of our farm-based staff, the Learning Garden proved to be an

exceptional classroom again in 2017, hosting more than 150 different varieties of vegetables, fruits, culinary herbs, and edible flowers.

• At Young Chefs Farm Camp in August, 16 campers spent a week together learning how to “walk

like a farmer and think like a chef.” The week included daily gardening projects, guest speakers on food science and beekeeping, and inspiration from the garden for each day’s lunch, cooked in the open air kitchen and wood-fired oven that flanks the Learning Garden.

• In the garden and during community-based programs, our dedicated volunteers donated over

400 hours of their time, including Etsy’s Annual Day of Service, which brought over 20 employees from their Hudson office.

12 ColumbiaCounty

ColumbiaCounty 13

Looking forward to 2018

Youth and School Groups Participating in Fresh Food Comes from the Farm Programs in 2017 Albany Medical College Albany Medical Teen Berkshire Farm Center Bethlehem Preschool Catskill Middle School Chatham Middle School Honor Society Columbia County Opportunities Head Start Germantown Elementary School Girl Scouts of Northeast NY Greenport Summer Recreation Program Heschel School Hillsdale Summer Recreation Program (Roe Jan)

• In 2018, the Healthy Food for All program will continue in

the spring with teen and family classes in Hudson and the curriculum pilot with second grade teachers in Germantown.

Then the initiative will expand to a third school district, while we continue to strengthen connections with all six school districts in the County.

Hudson Area Library Hudson Bluehawk Nation Summer Camp Ichabod Crane Elementary 1st Grade Ichabod Crane Elementary 2nd Grade Knickerbacker Middle School Malta Montessori School Northeast Community Center North Albany YMCA - Arbor Hill North Albany YMCA - Griffen Oakdale Summer Recreation Program Questar III CGEC

• In the 2018 growing season, we plan to provide 40 Fresh Food

Comes from the Farm programs to 1,000 participants.

• We will continue to provide transportation scholarships to

support participants in the Fresh Food Comes from the Farm program.

Youth students work the well pump so they can water thirsty plants in the Learning Garden at Katchkie Farm.

2017 partners and collaborators in Columbia County and the Upper Hudson Valley

Healthy Food for All teen student with bowls of fresh vegetables at Hudson High School, Hudson.

Etsy Field Goods Germantown Central School District Ginsberg’s Foods Hawthorne Valley Association Hudson Out Of School Time (HOST) Hudson Bluehawk Nation After School Program Hudson Promise Neighborhoods Long Table Harvest Perfect Ten Questar BOCES III Roxbury Farm Sage College Valley Variety

Youth students get ready to taste just-picked cherry tomatoes with Garden Educator Kristen Jovanelly in the Learning Garden at Katchkie Farm.

14 ColumbiaCounty

A teen student gathers eggs from The Sylvia Center’s hens.

ColumbiaCounty 15

events & collaborations The Sylvia Center marked our Tenth Anniversary with a series of events and promotions in New York City and Columbia County to celebrate cooking, and sharing good food with our supporters, students, and communities.

In New York City: In March, FOODMatch hosted a tasting seminar of local and hand-crafted foods including Consider Bardwell Farm cheeses, She Wolf Bakery breads, Red Hook Winery wines, FOODMatch olives and antipasti, and smoked salmon from Iliamna Fish Company.

In April, Peter Shelsky and Lewis Spada of Shelsky’s of Brooklyn hosted a comparative soup tasting in their Cobble Hill shop, bringing together chefs from Fletcher’s Brooklyn Barbecue, The Gumbo Bros, and El Atoradero. Guests tasted stews and soups from Matzo Ball to Pozole Rojo, while the chefs shared stories of childhood in the kitchen, coaxing flavor out of the humblest ingredients.

TSC was the beneficiary of two NYC chamber music concerts on April 20th and November 16th presented by Music for Food, a musician-led initiative for local hunger relief.

In the month of June, Taïm Falafel & Smoothie Bar shops in NYC produced a special Falafel Sandwich curated by Chef Scott Conant, with $1 from each sandwich going to benefit TSC’s programs.

Slice Out Hunger, founded by Scott Wiener of Scott’s Pizza Tours, produced its largest ever $1 Dollar Pizza Party on October 4th at St. Anthony of Padua Church in Soho, with 65 pizzerias from NYC and New Jersey donating and serving over a thousand pies by the slice. The event raised $50,000 in proceeds, split between The Sylvia Center and City Harvest.

Teen Apprentices and Chef Instructors with Jon Bon Jovi and Liz Neumark at the Art of Cooking Gala.

Teen Apprenticeship program graduates worked with Nicholas Morgenstern of Morgenstern’s Finest Ice Cream to develop three exclusive ice cream flavors that debuted at the Art of Cooking Gala for guests to taste and vote on. The winning flavor— New York Honey Apple—was served at Morgenstern’s Finest Ice Cream on the Lower East Side in the month of November, with proceeds to benefit TSC.

Teen Apprentices taste experimental batches of ice cream with Nicholas Morgenstern.

The 2017 Art of Cooking Gala took place on October 26th at Hudson Mercantile, raising $771,000 to support TSC’s NYC programs. Over 300 supporters gathered to celebrate our students, hear from Honoree Joe Ravitch and Community Program Partner ExpandED Schools, and enjoy a menu curated by Chef Michael White of Altamarea Group in collaboration with Great Performances.

Teens from Riis Settlement in LIC, Queens with Chef Instructor Theresa Morelli and Riis Settlement Teen Program Coordinator Jamiek Webb; take second prize for their latke creation at the Latke Festival.

Honoree Joe Ravitch with TSC Founder Liz Neumark.

16 Events&Collaborations

The 9th annual Latke Festival attracted over 600 latke lovers to the Brooklyn Museum on December 18th, with proceeds benefiting TSC’s NYC programs. Cooks for Health Teen students from Long Island City, Queens won second prize for their original recipe—a cheesy potato latke with homemade hot pepper jelly.

TSC Executive Director Anna Hammond with Candace Brazier-Thurman and Lucy N. Friedman of ExpandED Schools.

Events&Collaborations 17

In columbia county: Students, families, and supporters gathered for Spring Planting Day on Saturday, June 3rd at Katchkie Farm. Over 50 attendees spent time in the garden transplanting seedlings, visiting our flock of chickens, and making pizza in the wood-fired oven.

On Saturday, October 14th, we wrapped up the growing season at Fall Harvest Day, with over 50 students and friends who joined in the work of making lunch, pressing cider, and helping to tuck in the Learning Garden for the winter.

Youth visitors at Spring Planting Day took a break from gardening projects to enjoy a butterfly bench.

Throughout the summer, Oak Pizzeria Napoletana in Hudson featured a special Sylvia Center Seasonal Pizza on their menu, with ingredients picked from TSC’s Learning Garden at Katchkie Farm and all proceeds went to support our programs in Columbia County.

Visitors to Katchkie Farm gather next to the Learning Garden at Katchkie Farm.

Interns and Volunteers

The 10th annual Farm to Table Benefit Dinner, hosted by Great Performances on Saturday, July 15th at Katchkie Farm, raised over $155,000 to support TSC’s farm and community-based programs in Columbia County. Over 300 guests gathered in the fields of Katchkie Farm in Kinderhook, NY, for cocktails, tours of the Learning Garden, dinner, Silent Auction, Fund a Need, and dancing. Youth and parents from the Healthy Food for All Family program in Hudson welcomed guests with samples of just picked herbs from the Learning Garden. Assemblymember Didi Barrett presented a Proclamation honoring The Sylvia Center on its Tenth Anniversary, and HFFA parent Shantia Bygrave and her daughter Berlinda shared a few words about their experiences in cooking class.

In order to train advocates, teachers, and future leaders, TSC hosts and mentors interns from several institutions in New York City and the Upper Hudson Valley, including the Culinary Institute of America, Sage College, the Partners for Change Fellowship of the Colin Powell School for Civic and Global Leadership at City College CUNY, and Prep for Prep. TSC interns learn about every facet of a growing nonprofit, gain experience teaching and working at the community level, and develop mentoring relationships with our senior staff.

Program Director Jenn So with a Healthy Food for All program student at the Farm to Table Benefit Dinner.

The Farm to Table Benefit Dinner is made possible thanks to the efforts of a team of over 50 volunteers from Great Performances, Katchkie Farm, and The Sylvia Center who cook, serve, and organize the dinner each year.

18 Events&Collaborations

Liz Neumark and Assemblymember Didi Barrett with TSC’s Proclamation at the Farm to Table Benefit Dinner.

Our programs would not be possible without the amazing volunteers who contribute time and energy to our major events, including the Art of Cooking Gala, Farm to Table Dinner, Latke Festival, and $1 Dollar Pizza Party. We are especially grateful to the staff of Great Performances, whose hard work, good cheer, and dedication make the Farm to Table Dinner and Art of Cooking Gala possible each year.

Events&Collaborations 19

OurSupporters The Sylvia Center gratefully acknowledges the following individuals, foundations, corporations and organizations for their generous support in 2017.

Thank you! $50,000 +

Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation ExpandED Schools Great Performances Raine

$25,000 - $49,999

Bloomberg Philanthropies Fertitta Capital Divina Trudy Elbaum Gottesman and Robert Gottesman Norma Kamali and Martin Edelman Phil and Chantal Meldrum Matt Pincus Nancy and Fred Poses Joseph Ravitch Slice Out Hunger

$10,000 - $24,999

Anonymous (2) A+E Networks Bruce Gendelman Insurance Services CBS Corporation Discovery Communications Cindy and David Edelson Judith R. and Alan H. Fishman Dorian Goldman and Marvin Israelow J.P. Morgan Private Bank Margaritaville Holdings Liz Neumark and Chaim Wachsberger Trinity Church Wall Street Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP Eugene Shvidler Silverweed Foundation Matt and Angela Stone The Jim Jacobs Charitable Foundation Richard Ravitch Foundation The Solomon Wilson Family Foundation Universal Music Group Vice Media

$5,000 - $9,999

Arnhold Foundation Brooklyn Community Foundation Joel and Ulrika Citron Alisa and Daniel Doctoroff The Draydor Foundation Hani Farsi Katja Goldman and Michael Sonnenfeldt Sigrid Gray Steven Harris and Lucien Rees-Roberts Rachel Neumark Herlands

20 OurSupporters

and Jonathan Herlands Renée Iacone and Stephen Clearman James and Company, LLC Jon Bon Jovi Soul Foundation The Leo S. Walsh Foundation Jack and Frances Winston Levy Lionsgate Barbara Marcus and Michael Pollack Oak Pizzeria Napoletana Anna Olafsson Penguin Random House Anne Pollack The Purjes Foundation Dr. Robert C. and Tina Sohn Foundation Mindy Schneider and Michael Lesser Ewi and Jake Shafran Miriam Shaley and Binyamin Shalev Debbie and David Stern Alice and Thomas Tisch Pierre Weber Vivian and James Zelter

$2,500 - $4,999

Anonymous Atairos Management LP Paul and Linda Barnett Lori and Harley Bassman BNY Mellon Citrin Cooperman & Company Lois Kohn Claar and Gary Claar Montgomery Cleworth Lynn Cole and Ian Rosenblum Shawn and Bill Crowley Wade Davis Delaware North Amy and Roger Faxon Gordon, Herlands, Randolph, & Cox, LLP Steven B. and Elizabeth S. Gruber Hudson River Bank and Trust Co Foundation Meredith Kane Alisa and Scott Lessing The MCJ Amelior Foundation David and Lori Moore Kevin Morris Music for Food National Basketball Association National Mah Jongg League Foundation NBCUniversal Michelle Ores and Charles Schorin Abigail Pogrebin and David Shapiro Howard Pulchin and Joerel Ramos Jill and Mark Rachesky The Russell Berrie Foundation Arthur and Rebecca Samberg Jill and Howard Sharfstein Stephen and Wendy Siegel Tracy and Maxwell Snyder

Lee Sossen Emily and Steven Steinman David J. and Dianne B. Stern Tackel-Raven Family Foundation David and Peggy Tanner Tom Freston Foundation Eugenia Ulasewicz and Robert Labbancz Weimaraner Republic Pictures, LLC WME William Morris Endeavor

$1,000 - $2,499

Anita Sibony Adelsberg and Jonathan Adelsberg David Adler E. Sherrell Andrews and Robert Kuhbach Courtney Archer-Buckmire Peter Aschkenasy and Pamela Brier Stephanie Astic Virginia Bayer and Robert Hirt Rae Beispel Betsy Jacobs Berliner and David Berliner John and Amy Beyer Myra and Chuck Biblowit Bullfrog + Baum Cabot Creamery Co-operative Capital One Bank Mark Chaikowski William and Eva Clark Ellen and Casey Cogut Convene Management George Cozonis Andrew Craven Claire Creatore James Croghan and Louis Hedgecock Charles Cummings and Cynthia Hayes Joan and Peter Davidson Violet Eagan Luca Fontana and Barbara Galbiati Steven Fordyce and Victor M. Jimenez John Fraser Dawn Fratangelo Paul and Tracey Freeman Debbie and Ralph Gardner Tara and Joseph Gendelman Howard and Janet Ginsburg Sylvia Golbin Goodman Jacob Goodman James Guidera and Edward Parran Tiffany Hall and John Rhea Jean D. Hamilton and Richard McCarthy Douglas and Lara Holtz Harriet and Leonard Holtz IMAX Corporation Beth Jacobs and Dr. Keith Gottesdiener Kasirer Consulting John Knight David and E. Stacy Kramer Stacey and Curtis Lane Robin Lathrop Isaac Lee Sally and Stuart Lesser Joseph and Valery Levy James Lieber Dean and Katherine Martinus Sherri Marton and Robert Anderson Camille Massey and Gillie Holme Kevin Mayer Lynnette and Kevin McCollum Peter and Louise Mensch Seth Merrin Bella Meyer Dodi Meyer and Stephen Heim Amy Todd Middleton and Curt Middleton Melvin Neumark Susan and Harry Newton Kevin O’Connor Orentreich Family Foundation

John Pritzker Frederick Reif Bonnie and Abe Reiss Heidi and Richard Rieger Jon and Sara Rosen Mara and Ricky Sandler Kyle and Lucy Schanzer David Shapiro Shelsky’s of Brooklyn Robert Siegel Janet and Gilbert Spitzer Jonathan Steinberg Carl and Miriam Stern Orna and Geoffrey Stern Sullivan & Worcester LLP S’well Sysco Metro NY T Backer Fund Inc Taïm Falafel & Smoothie Bar Andrew Thompson Erica and Steven Tishman United Talent Agency John and Leslie Unwin Linnea VanTassel Teri and Barry Volpert Whole Kids Foundation Daryl Wickstrom and Steve Cunningham Bonnie Yochelson and Paul Shechtman You Order We Serve You Corp.

$500 - $999

David Adler Antoine Amira Rob Arango Didi and David Barrett Constance Beaty Mimi and Richard Beaven Steven Beispel and Ina Saltz Robert and Elisa Spungen Bildner Barbara Booras Maya Mulholland Botta Jill Cancellieri Central Synagogue Wanda Chin and Michael Danowski Shelly Cohen Cathy Cramer Linda and Ronald F. Daitz Paul Denu Amanda DiUglio Whitney and Peter Donhauser Nansi Friedman and Steve Pearlman Benjamin Giardullo Joan Gilbride Elizabeth Gill Stephen Giove Alicia Glen Amy Glosser and John Lieber Eve Goldberg and Neil Wallin Green Mountain Energy Gary Halperin John Hannam John Hart Sara Hartman Wendy Hattler-Dessy Michael Holtz Michael Jang James Johnson Jenny Sharfstein Kane and Andrew Kane Ami Solomon and Howard Kaplan Harriette Rose Katz David Koenigsberg and Ada Huang Katherine Kolbert Jeff Krasner and Hilah Iaulus Anjali Kumar and Atul Sharma Nancy Kyle Carole and Frank Lalli Cari Lang Laura Steinberg Tisch Foundation Sylvia J. Lavietes and Harri V. Taranto Despina Leandrou

Laurence Lesser Richard Lovett Manischewitz Company Martha McMaster and Sheldon Evans Merck Gives Back Jeremy Merrin and Linda Blum Elise Meyer and Henry I. Feuerstein Leanora and Clifford Michel Robert Mihalik Laura S. and Michael B. Miller Tony Muoser and Sara Cashen Michael Muzyk and Teresa Chaisson Muzyk Robert and Joanne Ollman Linda and Jack Pelaccio Steven and Linda Pittleman Ava Pollack Nicholas Scharlatt Eric Scherzer Judith and Martin Scherzer Lee Schrager Dara and William Schreiber Birgitta L. and Philip D. Sherman Charles Short Saskia and Stephen Siderow Mitchell D. and Beth Ann Silber Nina and Rudd Simmons Joel Steinhaus Rabbi David Stern and Nancy Kasten Stewart’s Holiday Match Barbara Tarmy and Gary Fradin Stathoula Tsambiras and Paul B. Schroer Krystle Watler The Whispering Bells Foundation Allison Whiting and Fred Schroeder Angie and Randy Zablo

$250 - $499

Linda Jean Abbey Rick Abramson James David Albert, MD and Bette Ann Sacks Ellen Baer Susan Ball & John Brigham Susan Bandy Beth’s Farm Kitchen Michael Biblowit Raquel Bierzwinsky Irwin Bloom Frederick and Jill Buell Gail Cannold James Colvin David Conyers Stephen Cornick Deborah Duke and Steve Rosenberg Anne Ebersman and Dan Caligor Todd Erling Emilia Estrela Deb and Storm Field Geoffrey Firth Judith Fryer and Daniel Biggs Thalassa Glasson Laurie and Jeffrey Goldberger Nicholas Haylett and Timothy Husband Kathryn and Vincent G. Heintz Jed David Satow Family Foundation Diana Jelinek James Joseph Alice Kang and Ohsang Kwon Mitchell Khosrova Cynthia Maasry Marcia Brady Tucker Foundation Rodolphus May Miami Open Joanna and Gregg Nadel Judith Nelson Gwendolyn Norton Shanee Person Nina Planck and Robert Kaufelt Privet House Owen and Michele Rankin

Brent Richard Caroline Rosen Morris and Mary Jane Rossabi Beth Rustin and Lee Stettner Pamela Salisbury Leslie and Sal Scotto Alaina Sparks and Yaron Klein Charoonkit Thahong Lauren Tregor Barbara Turk Miriam Wallerstein Anna Winand Cathy Zises

$100 - $249

Anonymous (2) Philip and Christine Abitabile Celia Baldwin Gary Bedigan Michelle and Gary Bettman Connor Bilby Blue Plate Ashley Bradley Chris Britten Mary Butz John and Carol Cerny Jacqueline Chang and Joseph Matunis Mike Collins Michael Conwell Leigh Crystal Isabel Davis Gregg Fisher Judith and Walter Flamenbaum Tom Freudenheim Irene Gibson Maximo Gomez Good Work Institute Google Inc. John Gutman Katka Hammond Margot Harley Dan Hassan Laura and Phil Hennessey Joseph Herwick Karen Hoguet Charlie Holtz and Cornelia Keyser Sara Horowitz James Howie and Susan Norton Janet Hutchinson Elizabeth Kendler Michele Kilcer Kristy King Heather Kowalski Louise Kramer Deborah Lans Susan Merson Mike’s Hot Honey Perrin and Tara Mouat Charlotte Nelson Daniel O’Donnell and John Banta Leigh Ollman Jeff Peck Robert Pennea Gabriel Pittleman Kathryn Prusinski Arthur and Judith Robbins Tara Rook Steve Sacks Dorothy Schrager Amy Sedlak Rodrigo Serna Miranda and Andrew Shear Susan Shelsky Roanna and Dr. Morris Shorofsky Jill Steinberg Jodi Sutton Heidi Terens Rebecca Tucker Steven Weinstein Sharon Wolfe Stanley and Judith M. Zabar

$10 - $99

Emilie Abrams AmazonSmile Foundation Annie Archer Maria Asteinza Joshua Backer Monique Black Rebecca Butler Aryeh Carni Bassam Chaptini Ellen Christi Congregation Beth El Dena Forster Carol Francescani Scott Friedman Suzanna Frosch Jamie Gershel Henri Hammond-Paul Sandra Kingsbury and Ted Timreck

Keith Klein Kristin Kraska Erika Lesser Mayra Malave Charlotte Mazer Janice McGuire Adrienne and Allen F. Nadel Wendy Nickerson Carlos Ortiz Zephyr Prusinski Victoria Rowan Josephine Sandler Miriam Solomon Ann Sprayregen Jeanne Washington

IN-KINDSUPPORTERSIN2017 New York City

Altamarea Group Brooklyn Museum Brooklyn Roasting Company Chef Scott Conant Consider Bardwell Farm Delaware North Cindy and David Edelson El Atoradero Fletcher’s Brooklyn Barbecue FOODMatch goop/Jean Godfrey-June Great Performances Happy Cooking Hospitality Hot Bread Kitchen Hudson Mercantile Hu Kitchen Iliamna Fish Company Irish Repertory Theater Jazz at Lincoln Center Joe Ravitch Joto Saké Katchkie Farm Kristy King Kings County Wines La Colombe Loews Hotels Loring Place Bentley Meeker Meyers USA Morgenstern’s Finest Ice Cream New Jersey Devils / The Prudential Center New York Distilling Company Eliza Osborne Red Hook Winery Party Rental Purple Yam Quality House Wines & Spirits Samira Sine Saxelby Cheesemongers Scott’s Pizza Company Shelsky’s of Brooklyn She Wolf Bakery Simone Soul Cycle S’well Bottles Taïm Falafel & Smoothie Bar The Gumbo Bros The League of Kitchens Tosler Davis Workman Publishing

latke festival Anolon BAM Café Baz Bagel + Restaurant Benchmark BK Chef Boxed Water Breville Brooklyn Academy of Music

Brooklyn Museum Brooklyn Roasting Company Bruce Cost Ginger Ale Burger & Lobster Cabot Cabot Chelsea Market Baskets Citrin Cooperman City Winery David’s Tea Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola Edible Brooklyn Four Cuts Steakhouse Garden Court Café Gefilteria Giada Di Laurentiis Great Performances Green Mountain Energy GuS Grown Up Soda Hubert’s Lemonade Il Valentino Osteria Jacob’s Pickles Kings Highway Fine Cider Korzo Kulushkat Limation Limeade Loreley Beer Garden Mae Mae Café Manischewitz Mike’s Hot Honey Orwashers Quality House Wines R&D Foods Riss’ Knishes Shelsky’s of Brooklyn Shmaltz Brewing Taylor Creative The Norm at Brooklyn Museum Tito’s Handmade Vodka Total Entertainment Tudor City Steakhouse Veselka Wusthof Yelp

Columbia County Bartlett House Ca’mea Jerry Croghan Etsy Field Goods Ginsberg’s Foods Great Performances Katchkie Farm Albert Lovelace Lover’s Leap Farm Nine Pin Ciderworks Roxbury Farm Talbott & Arding The Flammerie The People’s Pub Valley Variety Bob Walker and Kristy King

OurSupporters 21

BoardofDirectors

2017Financials

Liz Neumark

Founder and Board Chair

2017 Revenue Individual Contributions

128,963

Corporate Contributions

169,673

Foundation Grants

161,300

Program Fees

46,426

Special Events

94 8,757

Interest Income

Total Revenue & Support

Phil Meldrum Courtney Archer-Buckmire Dodi Meyer, MD Cindy Edelson Nina P. Freedman Amy Todd Middleton Scott Millstein Debbie Gardner Michael Pollack Tara Gendelman Howard Pulchin Trudy Elbaum Gottesman Chaim Wachsberger

Staff

1 ,1 5 3

$1,456,272

Anna Hammond

Executive Director

2017 Expense

(2009-2017)

Program Services

650,798

General and Administrative

104,784

Development 243,406 Special Events Costs

Total Expenses Change in Net Assets Donated Goods, Services, Facilities

Madeleine Fischer

Program Coordinator,

The Sylvia Center at Katchkie Farm

Joyce Huang

199,657

Finance and Human Resources Director

$ 1,198,645

Communications and Partnerships Manager

Raquel Jacquez Sharp Kristen Jovanelly

Garden Manager and Educator,

$257,627

The Sylvia Center at Katchkie Farm

2 26,9 1 0

Erika Lesser

Development Director

Statement of Financial Position Total Assets Total Liabilities

$1,106,236 62,904

Net Assets Board Designated-Operating Reserve

400,000

Unrestricted Net Assets

600,1 6 4

Restricted Net Assets Total Net Assets

Total Liabilities & Net Assets

43,168 1,043,332

$ 1,106,236

Flowering chives in the Learning Garden at Katchkie Farm.

Financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2017 have been audited by Adeptus Partners, LLC, Certified Public Accountants. The annual financial report has been filed with the New York State Charities Bureau. If you would like to receive a copy of our most recent audited financial statements or Tax Form 990, please email info@sylviacenter.org.

22 Financials

Jennifer John

Executive Director (2018- )

Pat Marrett

Program Coordinator,

The Sylvia Center In New York City

Virginia Meza

Program Coordinator,

The Sylvia Center at Katchkie Farm

Samantha Pagan

Director of Programs,

The Sylvia Center in New York City

Jenn So

Director of Programs,

The Sylvia Center at Katchkie Farm

ChefInstructors

ChefAssistants

Interns

Volunteers

Jayquan Burch Julie Cerny Natasha Decena Fran Hodges Sarah Kabalkin Amy Kim Kristen McCormick Theresa Morelli Justina Petway Jaka Ray Nina Simmons

Angela Carlucci Maria Contreras Frank Guaman David Henderson Samantha Kwok Manuel Lopez Anaya Martin Eli Mattern Nicole Mera Allison Orellana Jeniece Pratt Henry Ruiz

Lywana Dorzilor Zoe Hildenbrand Jessica Pelcher Amari Sealey

Jackie Appel Jessica Barsky Lael Cashen Elizabeth Collins Keith Crowe Jessica Dixon Mary Fratianni EJ Fratianni Mikela Freeman Tracey Freeman Luca Fontana Lindsey Poleck Joan Quilty Pete Tremblay Violet Tosler Anna Simmons Karen Wilson

PHOTO CREDITS: Christina Lane (1, 3, 4, 5, 11, 13-19); Dave Katz (1, 10); Erika Lesser (1); Lukas Maverick Greyson (2); Leticia Barboza (5, 8); Liz Neumark (9); Chuck Rosenthal (12); Peter Marquez (17); Alyssa Ringler (17); Raquel Jacquez Sharp (18, 22).

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