Finding Home Through Food
Vancouver, B.C., / Coast Salish Territories, April 20, 2021 – On May 19, 2021, Join Coho Collective and Flavours of Hope in nurturing dreams and supercharging small food businesses with the inaugural launch of Dream Cuisines: A Newcomer Women’s Food Business Pilot Program. The kick-off, virtual event features cooking demos from three women entrepreneurs hailing from Mexico and Egypt, and talks from special guests Jackie Kai Ellis and Sharon Bond-Hogg. Ticket proceeds support Flavours of Hope in growing and sustaining the Dream Cuisines program.
“We wanted to create a digital forum for anyone passionate about culture, food, language, and migration. And also for those who believe in the strength, resilience, and creativity of refugee women,” explains Trixie Ling, founder of Flavours of Hope. “Through this event, we will show the community how food can bring a sense of home and belonging to their lives.”
Attendees will get to meet: Angelica Davalos Ramirez, a baker incorporating Mexican flavours in her cookies, cupcakes, and donuts; Huda Abd Elhamid, an Egyptian cook representing her culture through food and her mother’s recipes; and Angeles Canedo, a Mexican cook using traditional clay pots (cazuelas) and natural ingredients to prepare authentic dishes.
The three women comprise Dream Cuisines: A Newcomer Women’s Food Business Pilot Program’s first cohort, created by Flavours of Hope in March. The program aims to help refugee women develop their food ventures through collaborative leadership and peer-based knowledge sharing, with Coho Collective providing kitchen space, mentorship, and access to resources.
“When Trixie first approached us with the idea, we knew Coho had to be part of these women’s journeys in Canada,” says Jennifer Chan, spokesperson for Coho Collective. “Food can play a pivotal role in creating a sense of belonging in a new country. We are happy to offer a space for them to work and be part of our tight-knit collaborative and entrepreneurial community, as well as provide mentorship while they grow their businesses.”
The event also feature talks from special guests Kai Ellis, a designer, entrepreneur, founder of Beaucoup Bakery, and author of bestselling memoir The Measure of My Powers; and Bond-Hogg, a Nooaitch First Nation member and CEO/founder of Kekuli Cafe, an Indigenous cuisine restaurant with province-wide franchise locations.
Tickets start at $20 and are available for purchase online now via Eventbrite. Those interested in a more interactive experience can purchase limited, deluxe tickets at $60, which includes a Dream Box featuring an entree, starter, dessert, and a drink crafted by Davalos Ramirez, Abd Elhamid, and Canedo. For more information on Flavours of Hope, please visit www.flavoursofhope.com. For more information about Coho Collective, please visit www.cohocommissary.com.
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ABOUT COHO COLLECTIVE
Founded in 2017, Coho Collective aims to build lasting communities in the food and beverage industry through shared kitchen space. It currently has three commissaries in Greater Vancouver: North Vancouver (375 Lynn Avenue), Powell (1507 Powell Street), and Strathcona (1370 East Georgia Street). Coho Collective recently launched Coho Market, an online store delivering goods from many small business members. Its Strathcona location features the first Coho Coffee and event space.
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ABOUT FLAVOURS OF HOPE
Flavours of Hope is a non-profit social enterprise that supports and empowers refugee newcomer women to earn livable income and build social connections in communities. Through peer programming, cooking, and pop-up dinners and events that share culinary traditions and stories, Flavours of Hope sets the table for refugee women to build strong relationships and experience connection, belonging, and opportunity.
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ABOUT DREAM CUISINES
Dream Cuisines: A Newcomer Women’s Food Business Pilot Program is an imaginative new program by Flavours of Hope, in partnership with Coho Commissary, The Women’s Economic Council, Vancity Credit Union, and The Vancouver Farmers Market. Built and led by women of colour and centred on collaboration and reciprocity, Dream Cuisines works with a cohort of newcomer refugee women to provide access to mentorship, kitchen space, and peer-based knowledge-sharing to propel women’s food businesses into the mainstream.
MEDIA CONTACTS:
Sophia Cheng
Coho Collective
sophia@sophiachengpr.com
604-828-3102
@chengsophia
Trixie Ling
Flavours of Hope
trixie@flavoursofhope.com
604-773-7511