Author Archives: Allison Krauza

Oxfam Hunger Banquet

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When first entering the hall in which the Oxfam Hunger Banquet was held, I was handed one of three different types of cards: low income, middle income, and high income. This card identified my socio-economic status for the evening. After receiving a low income card, I realized that I would be sitting on the floor for the duration of the banquet. Once I seated myself on the floor, I actually took a moment to read the card that I received.

My card told the story of a 45-year-old poor woman form Ethiopia named Demitu. Demitu is a mother to nine children, in addition to being a hardworking farmer. She had become a member of a group that brings farmers together and provides them with resources they can use to improve their production due to the unpredictable consequences of the weather. The investment that Demitu has in this group allows her to afford to buy better grains to bring a plentiful harvest.

As more people entered the room, I observed that the distribution of the people among the groups was uneven. When the presentation started, the picture became quite clear. The high income group consists of approximately 20% of the population and has an income of about $6,000 a year. They are lucky enough to have access to medical care and live in comfort and a secure home. The middle income group makes up about 30% of the population and has an income ranging from $1,032 – $6,000 a year. Their occupation would most likely be a day laborer. Their small income allows for electricity and schooling, which would be used to educate the boys of the family.

Finally, the low income group, the group that I was a part of, makes up roughly 50% of the population. This group makes less than $1,032 a year and faces the daily difficulty of finding shelter and food for their children. The mother of the family would most likely eat less in order to provide more for the family. In most cases, no one in the family consumes nearly the proper amount of daily nutrition. Adequate healthcare does not exist and mothers tend to lose 1-2 children before reaching the age of 5. Members of this group would typically work on the land, but would forfeit 75% of their yield to the plantation owner.

After this overwhelming information was provided, we were shown examples of how people were able to move up and down in class. It is very easy for people to shift down a class in comparison to people moving up in class. Some would even have to temporarily move down a class in order to be able to provide for their family.

When it came to the time in which each group ate, I noticed substantial differences between classes. The high income group consumed a nutritious well-balanced meal consisting of salad, chicken, pasta and rolls. When observing their table settings, there were table cloths with glass plates, wine glasses for drinks, silverware, folded napkins and even rose shape butter for the rolls! The middle income group was offered plain pasta and rolls, served with water. While their table had a table cloth, their plates and forks were plastic. In addition, when this group was announced to eat, the ladies were told to wait as the men served themselves first. Lastly, the low income group (my group) was given rice and beans to eat out of a paper cup with a plastic spoon. The table that the food was served on did not have a tablecloth on it like the others did. Similarly, the ladies of the low income group were told to wait until the men served themselves first to ensure they were fed.

After receiving my rice and returning to my seat on the floor, I was forced to think about the living conditions of the low income class. I’ll admit, the rice and beans were pretty good, but the social imbalance started to make me wonder. How long would this keep a person fed? What about balanced nutrition? Do they have any other options? This experience really changed my perspective of how I view things. It also made me realize the struggles that many people face on a daily basis. It has made me even more thankful for what I have, who I am, and where I am. I am inspired to do more to help those who are not as fortunate as I am.

My Italian Culture Present on Holidays

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A tradition in my family that makes an appearance every holiday is antipasto. The tradition started when my great grandmother came to America from Italy. She would carefully design a large tray of assorted meats, cheeses, olives peppers and other cold appetizers to pick on before the hot meal was served. Fortunately, the tradition was passed down through the generations. Antipasto is honestly my favorite part about holidays, more than any of the other food that is made! My grandma still purchases all of the ingredients needed to make the antipasto including: salami, provolone cheese, roasted peppers (sometimes we make them fresh ourselves), eggs (to hard boil), marinated mushroom and artichokes, and olives.

I woke up Thanksgiving morning very excited to help my mom prepare the antipasto, since I haven’t had it since the last holiday we celebrated, which was Easter. The antipasto is designed in multiple layers, which my mom takes very seriously. It starts with rolling pieces of salami and placing them along the outer edges of an oval shaped plate. After all the salami is rolled, provolone cheese, cut into small pieces, is placed in between two salami rolls. Next, roasted peppers are cut into slivers and placed in the space the cheese created. Whatever pieces are too small or do not meet mom’s approval are thrown in the middle of the plate to be eaten later. Peeled and cut hard boiled eggs are placed on top of the peppers. Then, in rings, the mushrooms and artichokes are placed, moving in towards the center of the plate. Finally, olives are stacked up in the middle. I used to get in trouble when I was younger for “helping out” because I would start to eat the salami and olives before they even reached the plate! To complete the dish, the juices from the marinated mushrooms and artichokes are poured over the whole antipasto. The plate is then covered and placed in the fridge to marinate before we eat.

Both my mom and I prefer the leftovers to the real dish. When we finish eating the antipasto course, there is always so much left over! My mom carefully spoons the remaining items, along with the marinade, into a container. That container then goes in the fridge to get picked on for the next week or so. As unappetizing as this may sound, I would get up in the morning and that would be the first thing I would look to eat! Delicious!

I am happy that my family incorporates our Italian culture into all of the holidays that we celebrate. I believe that it enhances every holiday we celebrate, in addition to being with family, of course. It is a tradition I look forward to preparing and eating each holiday!

My Final Visit to Port Richmond HS

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Last Monday was my last visit to my mentee at Port Richmond High School. For our last meeting, we decided to talk about Thanksgiving and how our families celebrate. My mentee shared that every Thanksgiving he assists his grandmother with cooking the turkey and preparing the rest of the side dishes that are served. Together we discussed the different foods that one would traditionally eat for Thanksgiving including stuffing, string beans, mushrooms, regular potatoes, sweet potatoes, etc. and the variations in preparing them. Through his explanations, I noticed that we have similarities in how we prepare the food that both of our families enjoy on Thanksgiving.

After discussing Thanksgiving, I asked him the questions found on the “Mentee” Student Survey. I wish that we had received this survey earlier in our meetings with our mentee so it could have served as an ice breaker to allow us to get to know our mentees better. I also believe that it would have provided great discussion topics to utilize during our meetings.

Overall, I am happy that I had the opportunity to be a mentor for a student at Port Richmond High School. This was a new and exciting experience for me. I gained new social skills and learned how to be a proper role model for those younger than me. Although I was apprehensive about being a mentor, I really came to enjoy spending my Monday mornings at Port Richmond High School visiting my mentee. I hope that I successfully did my job as mentor and gave my mentee options to consider as he plans for his future.

86th Street in Bensonhurst

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This semester, Lauren, Shannon and I had the opportunity to explore Bensonhurst, Brooklyn and learn about this neighborhood. Before we set out to explore, we searched the neighborhood online to find specific areas within the neighborhood that we should make a point to see. One of those areas was 86th Street, formerly known as Little Italy, but now known as a little “Chinatown.” Lining the sidewalks along 86th Street are numerous fruit and vegetable markets. These marks are tightly packed next to one another, giving people a variety of produce to choose from. The prices of the produce found at each of the markets are generally the same, but you could observe patrons searching for a bargain. This caused me to wonder how any of these markets could prosper, considering their abundance and competitive prices.

Mixed in with these produce markets is Meat Supreme, which is regarded as Brooklyn’s gourmet market place. Meat Supreme has handmade pastas, sausage, sharp cheese, and many other Italian offerings from the “old country.” This gourmet market has been around nearly 30 years, which preceded the influx of Chinese immigrants. Meat Supreme represents some of the remaining Italian culture that can be found along 86th Street, since most of the neighborhood has been overrun by the Chinese immigrants who migrated to Brooklyn in the 1990s.

In addition to the produce markets and Meat Supreme, there are nonfood markets as well. Vendors sell items such as bedding, rugs, bags, clothing, and housewares such as plates, pots and bowls. Additionally, there are novelties that you would normally find in a dollar store strung along canopies. This main shopping drag offers a variety of products that appeal to all shopping tastes.

Port Richmond Mentoring

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For the past four Mondays, I have spent my mornings visiting my mentee at Port Richmond High School. I’ll admit, the first time I went I was nervous about meeting with him. What would I say? What would we talk about? We were still very unfamiliar with each other. The only time that we met prior was when we visited Port Richmond High School to introduce the program as a class. For the first meeting with my mentee, I went with Laruen, Shannon, and Kim. I’m sure that this helped make the visitation more relaxed for the mentees, and even for us as well. We decided to sit down for the period as a group and ask each other questions to get to know one another. We were able to learn so much about each other in a less awkward setting. We listened as the mentees spoke about themselves and speculated about what their futures may hold. Each mentee told us a little about themselves, their family, their favorite foods, what they like to cook (they all had a difficult time answering those two), and some other random fun facts that helped us break the ice.

I also discovered a lot about my mentee’s current cooking class. Every Monday, the students receive a new recipe for what they will be tackling that week. In class, they review the recipe in depth and make sure they are familiar with all of the ingredients that are necessary to make the dish. Knowing the ingredients and measurement amounts is very important to a successful dish. For example, one of the recipes my mentee was given called for two eggs, but it did not specify what size. I never realized that the size of the egg matters. My mentee explained that a larger or smaller egg than what was called for by a recipe will disrupt the consistency of the dish. This is now something that I’ll look for and keep in mind whenever I cook or bake.

On Tuesdays, the students begin to gather and prep the ingredients that will be used in the recipe. Actual cooking is reserved for Wednesdays and Thursdays. Every Friday, the students plate and eat the meal that they prepared. This process repeats each week with a new recipe. Although the dishes are typically chosen at random, the class prepared something special during the Mets World Series week. Mini knishes were the fare of choice, since this finger food reflected a menu item served in a baseball stadium.

While I was hesitant at first, I have come to enjoy spending my Monday mornings at Port Richmond High School.  My mentee is a lot of fun, and I look forward to hearing about his cooking experiences. It has been a pleasure getting to know him as I try to help him focus on his plans for the future.

Port Richmond Partnership Panel

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Last Monday, the Center for Leadership and Civic Engagement held a panel to discuss the Port Richmond Partnership. Many of us packed into the room and attentively listened to what the panelists and guest speakers had to say in reference to their hopes and dreams for the neighborhood. It was truly inspiring listening to how passionate each panelist was discussing their hopes and dreams for the betterment of the neighborhood. Although I have lived on Staten Island all my life, I did not know about the neighborhood of Port Richmond that well. I found the presentation on the history of the neighborhood to be very interesting. I never realized what a cultural melting pot Port Richmond was due to the influx of immigrants. I would have never thought that Port Richmond was the center for immigration or even commerce. I was a little taken back to see how Port Richmond went from such a thriving, commerce filled area to a poor neighborhood.

I am happy that I attended this panel. It has extended my knowledge of this neighborhood as well as given me a sense of the area that I will soon be spending my time in as I work as a mentor for a student at Port Richmond High School. Having a background on the culture of the area will help me understand the perspective of my student. Background knowledge of the environment the student encounters on the daily basis will hopefully assist me in forming a bond and create a level of mutual understanding.

The People Around Us Influence Our Decisions

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After my music lesson on Saturday, my mom and I decided to go out to eat. As we sat down in the booth and looked at the menu, neither of us could make a decision of what to get. After the waitress came over to us multiple times asking if we were ready to order, my mom and I knew that we needed to make a decision. As I continued to look through the menu, I noticed that my mom was looking around the diner. When I asked her what she was doing, she said that she was looking to see what the people around us were eating to help her decide what to order. Then she asked me what I was thinking.

We couldn’t decide between breakfast or lunch. Then we both continued to survey the room thinking that if we were to see someone else’s order, something would strike us and a decision could be made. I find it intriguing how we were both looking to see something in order to make a decision, yet we were unable to decide based on what we had a taste for. In addition, we were looking for others to influence our decision as opposed to depending on a personal preference.

There have been many times when I have been out to eat and I have been interested in other people’s food over my own. On numerous occasions, I have found myself ordering one thing and then saying I should have ordered something else when I see another’s dish arrive. I’m not sure what causes this phenomena, but I am curious as to why one questions their own decisions based on another’s.

Delicious Orchards

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Last Saturday, my family and I went to a place called Delicious Orchards in Colts Neck, New Jersey. We go there every fall with the sole intention of buying apple pies. Delicious Orchards is a country food market that is visited by over 2.5 million people a year. It includes a bakery, produce section, dairy section, seafood, organic, and even candy section. Whenever we go, I always go straight to the bakery section for the pies. Sometimes I just stand there and watch the decisions people make on what pie to get. There are many options through a selection of a variety of flavors including cherry, blueberry, peach, apple, apple crumb, and pecan.

I watched as several customers on line shouted to family members to help them with their decision. They would debate back and forth over flavor choice. What I found interesting was one couple and their exchange. The man asked the woman her flavor preference of which pie to pick. When she replied sugar free apple, he made a face of disgust. He said, “Sugar free? Who would eat anything sugar free, that’s gross? Why bother eating it them?” I’m sure that’s the reaction most of us would have as well. It’s amazing how much we rely on sugar to enhance the taste of our food and the thought of eliminating it is ludicrous. It appears that the only consumer that would opt for a sugar free pie would be someone who is suffering from a health condition that warrants the choice. Would it be so terrible to eliminate some sugar from our diet even if we weren’t forced to?

A Shocking Reality

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Prior to watching A Place at the Table, participating in class discussions and visiting the neighborhood of Port Richmond, I didn’t realize the magnitude of the struggles faced by residents of food deserts. A food desert is defined as an area that lacks adequate access to affordable and quality fresh food items. These areas lack supermarkets and places where fresh fruits, vegetables and meats can be purchased. Instead, these neighborhoods are filled with fast food restaurants and bodegas, where a bag of chips or cookies can be easily bought in volume for an inexpensive price.

After watching A Place at the Table, I was left speechless. It is heart-wrenching to see what these families go through on a daily basis. I find it unfathomable that people in this country could possible go hungry, considering the over-production of food and amount of waste. A common problem that many families in the film face is known as “food insecure.” When you are food insecure, you do not know where your next meal will come from, if there even is a next meal. That is extremely frightening! When food is easily accessible, it is typically of poor quality. As stated in the documentary, the price of fresh fruits and vegetables has risen by 40% since 1980, while the price of processed foods has declined by 40%. The significant shift in price levels undoubtedly affected food choice. Low income families are forced to choose quantity over quality. Expensive produce and meats are sacrificed for chips, canned foods, cookies and anything else that will give more for less. Unfortunately, the end result is a higher incidence of obesity, diabetes, and lifelong health struggles.

As we took a tour of Port Richmond, I couldn’t help but notice the lack of supermarkets as compared to my own neighborhood, which seems to have too many. I did observe one, but it was destroyed in a fire and there is no immediate intention to rebuild it. That leaves the residents in this neighborhood without easy access. In order to shop in a large supermarket, the residents will have to find a means to travel outside of their neighborhood. There is a market located on Port Richmond Avenue that sells fresh produce, but sadly that was the only one that I saw. Fast food restaurants, however, are plentiful.

Watching the documentary and visiting Port Richmond afforded me the opportunity to see, first-hand, the problems facing our local communities. I didn’t realize these very real struggles existed so close to home.

My Food Voice

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A tradition that is upheld in my family is Sunday sauce. This is a time in which all of my family members set aside their busy schedules, as well as their phones, to talk with one20150531_142919 another about their week, recount old memories and create new ones. This tradition originated in Calabria, Italy with my great-grandmother and her extended family. Early Sunday morning, she would start to make the sauce from scratch, preforming the tedious process of removing the seeds from tomatoes and peeling them. While I have never tried to actually make sauce from fresh tomatoes, my mom and grandma have groomed me to make the sauce just as my great-grandmother did.

Although some substitutions have been made to the recipe, including the replacement of fresh garden tomatoes with canned crushed tomatoes and fresh 20150531_163516herbs with dried ones, Sunday sauce remains quite familiar. To keep with the tradition of Sunday sauce, I let the meatballs and sausage soak in the sauce to give it the same robust flavor as my great-grandmother did. The tradition of this dish continues to keep the memory of my great-grandmother alive.