Pizza Making in Poland: By Eric Horwitz, CEO / World Traveler
Warsaw, Poland – July 2023
This past July, to escape the Phoenix heat, I boarded a plane to Warsaw, Poland to experience European walkability, a lifestyle with high-quality food, hotels, and pretty much everything at 50% off the price of LA and Scottsdale, beautiful outdoor cafes, gorgeous parks and a chance to meet and connect with Eastern Europeans. I’d been to Warsaw the summer before for a little over a week and loved it.
I cold-emailed about 10 members of EO Poland (using the directory from the EO website) telling them about how I’m a Chef/business owner in town for a few weeks and wanted to meet with local ¨EORS.´ Soon I was invited to a whiskey tasting on a Thursday night.
Excitedly, I took an Uber to Dawid’s condo, the most recent chapter president, a bit outside of the city center. I was the first to arrive and we swapped stories of meeting EOers abroad, including his connection to the Los Angeles chapter president.
Soon the local chapter members swarmed in, speaking mostly English, with a bit of Polish. The industries they were in varied from software to email marketing to tech and many others. We tried some whiskies and wine, and on the balcony, they were serving pizzas from a small pizza oven. I put on my chef hat and stepped in to help out. The pizzas came out pretty good… but were a bit tricky because the oven was not like my setup at home with pizza stones, giant ovens, and other chef stuff. Still, it was enjoyable to serve guests some bites of cheesy goodness.
While we won’t be teaching any lessons on ¨Perogis¨ (a tasty dumpling) or ¨Paczki¨ (a Polish donut) my love of cooking, food and new cultures will always find its way into our curriculum.
Surfing and Good Food: By Alex Sanchez, Sales / Marketing Director
Playa San Blas, El Slavador 2023
Being by the ocean has its benefits like cleaner air, immune boosting sea breeze, and more vitamin D but nothing beats enjoying a succulent 8 OZ Lobster Tail fresh out of the sea with a tasty Mid Rare Fillet Miñon from Nicaragua. Did I forget to mention that we are neighbors with Nicaragua, Nicaraguan beef is considered to be some of the best in the world, with the majority of it being exported to the U.S. It’s been a dream come true. Surfing and good food have been the highlight of my time in El Salvador.
I Came to El Salvador from Indianapolis, Indiana for a 3-month vacation to visit family members in 2018 and when I got to surfing my 8 ft longboard I knew this was the place for me. I’m not the best surfer but I love it and being an expat in El Salvador has been great. We have a large community of expats who love surfing and the ¨locals¨ (this is what you call native surfers in surf towns) are really inviting and down to earth. So if you’re ever looking for a new adventure by the sea you know where to find me, down in el Salvador surfing 15 ft waves and eating great food.
Ps. I’m joking about the 15 ft waves, I can only handle about 4 – 5 ft but I’m allowed to dream 🙂
Rivers and Mountains: By Emily Rolle, Operations Director
Island of Dominica, 2023
On the island of Dominica, we are known for our rivers and mountains. My name is Emily Elizee-Rolle, mother, wife, community leader, and the Operations Director at LIFT Enrichment.
Working with LIFT Enrichment has truly been a praise-worthy moment because the company mission resonates with me. It is vital to teach lifelong culinary skills to children. In Dominica, we have beautiful mountains and rivers which are home to a lot of wildlife. We love to eat Callaloo Soup which is a tasty fan favorite on our Island. Callaloo (Amaranth) Soup is a delicacy made with main ingredients like Callaloo, Crabs, Dumplings, and Coconut milk.
When I am not working, I love taking river or sulfur baths with my daughters or spending time at the beach. I also enjoy camping with my camping club (Pirates Camping Club) but most of all I love baking bread and enjoying good company.
A Catracha with a New Purpose: By Gaby Rodrigues, Program Manager
Tegucigalpa, Honduras 2023
I want to preface this by defining what is a Catracha. It’s a national dish: a fried corn tortilla with refried beans spread on top and a sprinkle of grated white cheese… yum!
Catracha(o) is also a nickname that means basically anything ¨Honduran¨ and signifies national pride and identity.
Having said this I would like to introduce myself as a proud Catracha, mom, and wife from Honduras. I currently serve as a Program Manager at LIFT Enrichment, drawn to this role by the company’s exceptional purpose – providing culinary life skills to children in California and now Texas. LIFT’s mission to inspire children, potentially turning them into future chefs, deeply resonates with me, and I am immensely proud to be a part of this endeavor.
A Daughter to a Chef: By Gabrielle Charles, Administration
Caribbean, 2023
As a recent finance and biology graduate, I decided to start working remotely. This is when I found LIFT Enrichment. working remotely has helped me learn to appreciate the connection obtained with people across the world while working from the comfort of my home.
I love spending time with my partner, family, and dog Jasper while enjoying recreational activities like hairstyling, dancing, sewing, cooking, and interior design. As a daughter to a Chef, I love food and all that it entails like culture and connecting with like-minded individuals from all over the globe with the sole mission of bringing healthy cooking to students.
Here is a link to book a meeting with our team
We can bring our Healthy Culinary Workshops to your school districts in 2024.
Previous Newsletters
Cauliflower Veggie Fried Rice (Recipe From Our Classes), Focusing on School Districts, a Client Case Study: Panama Buena Vista, Meet Our New President Slava Repetina, Exploring Mexico, Three Highlights from Boost 2023 (and one Huge mistake), The Two Big Ways We Hit 7 Figures (and Rebounded Post-Covid)
Best,
Eric Horwitz
