Facebook post by Ed Lee:
I am closing @milkwoodlouky today after 7 amazing years in downtown Louisville. The events of the past week have given all of us much to think about and the time to reflect and decide where we go from here. I want to help my community of Louisville. There is so much work to be done and while I am only one person, together with some amazing humans, we are going to take a step in the right direction.
I am excited to announce the McAtee Community Kitchen which will operate out of the former MilkWood kitchen. We will meet the needs of three Louisville communities: Shelby Park, Russell, and California neighborhoods with hot meals, groceries, supplies and more.
Chef Nikkia Rhodes will run the kitchen with her students. She is the director of the Iroquois High School Culinary Arts Program. But to know her is to know that she is a natural leader, a talented chef and someone who will create change. It is her time. This is no longer my kitchen. It belongs to her. We are not here simply to feed those in need. We are here to inspire the next generation of Black chefs in Louisville through pride in our professionalism, passion and integrity. I could not think of a better person to lead this charge than Nikkia.
This kitchen is named in honor of Chef David McAtee, a beloved BBQ chef who devoted his livelihood to helping people in the West End community of Louisville. With his family’s blessing, we hope to honor his memory with a kitchen that will serve the Black community in Louisville, while also empowering the work of young Black leaders in the culinary space.
I could not do any of this without the Herculean team of @leeinitiative led by @lindseyofcacek
A special thank you to @robertbarryfleming and @actorstheatre for giving us this opportunity to realize a dream long in the works
Thank you to our partners Children Shouldn’t Hunger, Actors Theatre, Ashbourne Farms, Dare to Care, and OneWest.
#LEEInitiative #ChildrenShouldntHunger #Coummunity #BlackLivesMatter #FeedTheWest #Diversity #BeTheChange
@ Louisville, Kentucky
