LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — Partners for Youth in Lexington is linking up with Food Chain to provide high schoolers with real-world work experience while making a positive impact in their communities.
Alyse Patton, a rising junior, is using her internship at Food Chain as the first step toward her dream of becoming a chef.
"Every day it's different," Patton said.
For Patton, this opportunity goes beyond earning spending money – it's providing valuable experience in her chosen field.
"Coming here I had like a limited experience with different produce and ingredients and stuff that went to the food," Patton said. "Now that I'm here I've seen like different fruits and vegetables I've never seen in my entire life and it's like an eye opener."
Patton believes her role extends beyond kitchen tasks. She's committed to Food Chain's mission of providing free community meals to those who need them most.
"It's not about you, it's about what you're doing, who you're helping, and how you're helping them, you know, just reminding yourself why you're here, why you going out of your way to do this," Patton said.
In June alone, she helped the non-profit produce 12,000 meals. This food supports students who use Fayette County Public School's meal assistance program during the school year and need similar support during summer months.
"The people here, they're all contributing to a goal in mind," Patton said, describing the experience as "very rewarding."
While her internship will end in a few weeks, Patton says the lessons learned will continue to fuel her passion for cooking.
"It's like you're a scientist experimenting with all sorts of bottles and chemicals to see what goes together and what doesn't go together," Patton said. "So seeing all the different varieties of stuff here it's like now I really want to go home and just try something new or bring something back that I can use for cooking and stuff."
