Programs and results
What we aim to solve
Too many people in our community do not have adequate access to food on a regular basis.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Kansas City Community Kitchen (KCCK)
Our community kitchen provides a hot, nutritionally balanced lunch every Monday through Friday, even holidays. The kitchen is open to anyone who comes, primarily to be a resource for those that have low or no income so that their limited resources might be used elsewhere. Food is prepared fresh, on-site daily by staff, culinary trainees and volunteers. KCCK also prepares meals to be delivered to partner organizations. This service is meant for partner service agencies that don't have the capacity to prepare their own food. In total, the kitchen provides more than 500 meals every weekday.
Culinary Training Program
NourishKC's Culinary Skills Training is a 8-week intensive, entry-level program that provides basic culinary skills, job training, and hands-on experience in the food service industry. Emphasis is placed on food safety, basic food preparation, and professionalism.
Food Rescue Program
Food rescue is the practice of recovering perfectly edible food that would otherwise end up in landfills from places such as farms, food distributors, grocery stores, produce markets, or restaurants and distributing it to local emergency food programs. NourishKC's Food Rescue Program is essential to providing balanced, nutritious meals at Kansas City Community Kitchen and assisting local pantries with access to fresh produce and shelf stable items on a weekly basis.
Where we work
Awards
Affiliations & memberships
Nonprofit Connect of Greater Kansas City 2017
External reviews

Photos
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Number of volunteers
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Social and economic status
Related Program
Kansas City Community Kitchen (KCCK)
Type of Metric
Input - describing resources we use
Direction of Success
Holding steady
Context Notes
2015 & 2016 are estimates. In 2017 we noted the number of volunteer shifts. In 2018 we started using a new online management system and noted the number of registrations.
Number of meals provided
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Adults, Children and youth
Related Program
Kansas City Community Kitchen (KCCK)
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
Total meals served through Kansas City Community Kitchen (includes hot lunches served in the dining room as well as meals to local partners serving throughout the week).
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
NourishKC is striving to end food insecurity while promoting healthy food access every day. Our KCCK serves more than a warm meal, it provides a sense of community, consistent structure, and acknowledges the value of each person through our Dining with Dignity approach. NourishKC has strong relationships with our core volunteers, as many have been a part of KCCK efforts for years. We coach our volunteers to provide individual guest services and consistent kitchen functions so that guests feel valued while enjoying a healthy meal. Through community supports, volunteers, our Board of Directors, and donors NourishKC will continue to collaborate with other food access partners to address systemic food insecurity in the metro area.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
Our community kitchen currently serves lunch 5 days a week. Meals are served restaurant-style with guests getting a choice of entree and sides, being served by volunteer "wait staff" and being asked what they like or don't like. We eventually want to expand that program to 7 days a week in more a community diner/restaurant environment. We'd eventually like to see this become a network of "pantries" that feel more like a neighborhood corner store with strategic locations all over the metro. The Board of Directors is exploring ways to advance our culinary training program in 2020, as we suspended its efforts for 2019. The staff and board are also strategizing towards longer term goals through fundraising, infrastructure, policies, and sustainability to serve Kansas City area beyond 2020.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
NourishKC has a team of 7 staff members devoted to various aspects of operations and program management. Our community kitchen is staffed by people with experience in restaurants and other commercial kitchens, and administrative staff have years of experience in their respective fields, from accounting to program management. The Board of Directors has a wide array of expertise to oversee the impact of established goals while adapting to the community needs based on organizational capacity. Our staff and board members have been fortunate to attend sessions at the Kansas Leadership Center during the past two years to learn active leadership through coaching and training. This learning opportunity has guided the Board and staff to adjust its daily efforts towards forward movement. Perhaps our greatest strength is our willingness and ability to build relationships with other organizations and collaboratively work on things beyond what any one of us is able to do on our own. Whole Food, Farm to Market Bread and other local companies donate food to us on a regular basis for use in our community kitchen, but then other companies like Harrah's, Citi, BlueScope Steel, Bayer, Cargill and KCPD send groups of volunteers on a regular basis so that our guests are served in a way that offers dignity. Another deep capacity of NourishKC is PEOPLE. The historic and new networks of volunteers is the breathe that keeps NourishKC feeding 400 people daily. The Board and staff are working to recruit more corporate, small business, and civic groups to learn how two hours of time truly impact a hungry person. Volunteer appreciation, regular communication, group incentives, and other supports are being developed for the Kansas City Community Kitchen's long-term success.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
This year NourishKC is focusing on transition processes and rebuilding measures for the Kansas City Community Kitchen while strategizing long-term programs for 2020. As noted by our Board of Directors, we are focusing our fundraising efforts to make headwinds to our sustainability and impact. Our working board and thousands of volunteers make every effort to assist in getting nutritious food to Kansas City community members.
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
NourishKC
Board of directorsas of 09/23/2021
Mark Galus
Terri Curran
Hallmark Cards (former)
Andrew Ehrlich
Hostess
Geoff Parker
Retired, George K. Baum & Company
Jim Cummins
Deacon of Episcopal Church
Joselyn Pfliegier
Nancy LaPorta
Black & Veatch
Julie Stoetzer
Jennifer Rule
Community Volunteer
Julia Higgerson
Catalent Pharma Solution
Lindsay Harmon
Community Volunteer
Mark Galus
Galus Legal LLC
Pierre Yancy
ThinkTank Solutions
Gar Demo
Saint Thomas Episcopal Church
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? Yes
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? GuideStar partnered on this section with CHANGE Philanthropy and Equity in the Center.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
No data
Gender identity
No data
No data
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data