From concessions, to large events, Notre Dame produces a lot of food. But, the Levy team, who runs catering at Notre Dame’s athletic facilities, as well as catering for meetings and events, isn’t just spending time in the kitchen. They are also out in the community giving back to those in need.
The Levy team thinks beyond the initial sporting and catering events at Notre Dame that they serve, identifying food capture efforts following the events. With assistance from their culinary and concessions teams and by partnering with Cultivate Food Rescue, over 15,649 meals were delivered to those in need in 2023.
“Working with Cultivate to ensure we are connecting people in need with what would otherwise be food waste has been such a pleasure,” said Chef Aaron McKay, Levy senior executive chef. “It motivates the team to know their hard work is appreciated twice; once by the fans, and again by those who are struggling to feed themselves and their families in our community.”
The team also takes their own cooking skills out into the community. The culinary team participated in the Taste of Hope Gala in South Bend in partnership with Cultivate Food Rescue. Cultivate’s mission is to provide meals for Michiana-area community members, as well as provide weekend meals for food insecure students. In 2023, the team provided 400 portions of bread pudding to help raise funds for Cultivate’s food rescue and distribution efforts.
Another partnership that Levy focuses on is one with Unity Gardens. Levy’s culinary team participated in Unity Gardens’s Taste of Unity Gala. Each year, the gala benefits community gardening and a collaborative network across the region which, in turn, provides fresh produce to area families in need, increasing the availability, awareness, and accessibility of healthy, locally grown food.
Levy team members have also helped raise over $40,000 in 2023 for Esperanza Community Services. Esperanza’s mission is to help children and adults with developmental disabilities in the Chicago and northwest Indiana areas.
“Service to Esperanza is an important part of my life and I’m proud to have served on the volunteer Board of Directors for the past nine years, most recently as Board Chair,” said McKay. “I’m so fortunate to work with such caring and hard-working colleagues at Levy who have contributed time, effort, and resources to help further our mission to empower people with developmental disabilities to reach their full potential and lead fulfilling, independent lives.”