Chef Lorena Garcia cooks with young children at United Way Center for Excellence in Early Education

Chef Lorena Garcia, one of the country’s leading Latina chefs, guided four-year-olds at the United Way Center for Excellence in Early Education Demonstration School in preparing healthy, nutritious food. Channel 10 news anchor and United Way board member Laurie Jennings joined Chef Lorena for the cooking demonstration which was also a preview to “Cook it Up for Kids at the Falls,” a culinary extravaganza benefitting the United Way Center for Excellence in Early Education on Sunday, February 8, 2009 at The Falls.

A well-known chef, restaurateur and television celebrity, Chef Lorena has recently taken on the challenge of combating childhood obesity using her culinary knowledge. She developed “Big Chef, Little Chef” as a comprehensive program to help kids and their families take control of their eating habits and ultimately, their lives.

In addition to teaching young children about good nutrition, the Demonstration School uses cooking as a way to teach children math.