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The Lost Art of Cooking — and Why It Matters More Than Ever
Not very long ago, cooking was not a hobby.
It was a basic human skill.
Every household knew how to take raw ingredients—grains, vegetables, beans, meat, herbs—and transform them into food that could sustain life. Cooking was daily maintenance for the body, much like tending a fire or mending clothing.
Somewhere along the way, we lost that art.
What Parenting Children with Disabilities Taught Me About Strength, Advocacy, and Community
Parenting a child with disabilities means stepping into a world most people don't fully understand — one filled with medical appointments, unanswered questions, and moments of profound isolation. But it also means discovering a strength you never knew you had. This is my story of navigating two children's complex diagnoses, receiving my own, and finding the community that changed everything.
When Did Vegetables Become So Threatening?
At some point, vegetables became controversial. Not medically controversial or scientifically controversial — culturally controversial. For millions of children, vegetables are now treated like something to negotiate, resist, or endure.
I saw it in miniature the other day.
It wasn’t even a bowl of greens. It was a few microgreens on a white bread sandwich. I was going slow.
He looked at it like I had betrayed him.
This was not a toddler.
This was a ten-year-old.
“I’m going to have to eat vegetables for the rest of my life?!”
Horrified. Dramatic. Entirely typical.
And revealing.
Because this wasn’t really about a child. It was about cultural training.
Tending the House: Connecting Snacks to Our Children’s Future
My aunt recently gave me a small, worn book printed in 1915. It is called The Runner’s Bible — a pocket collection of scripture “for people on the go.” She received it from her mother. Now it sits in my hands.
In this season of navigating cancer, I have started a quiet ritual. Each morning, I flip through and let a verse find me. It steadies my mind before the day accelerates. It connects me to her — and to the women before her — who endured what they were handed and tended what was theirs to tend.
Why Parents Lead: Voices from the Field
Ask most parent leaders how they got started, and you’ll hear a familiar theme: someone saw something in them that they hadn’t yet seen in themselves.
A colleague. A program coordinator. Someone who said, simply — you should be here.
When Illness Touches the Family: A Gentle Wake-Up Call About Food
I had found a lump.
That discovery led to the mammogram and ultrasound where I asked the technician a question that most people are afraid to ask.
“Can you tell whether it’s cancer?”
She paused before answering. “Usually, yes.”
I asked how she could tell. She explained that certain features—spiculated (spiky) margins—often signal malignancy. Then she said something I will never forget: “I’d say this is a five.”
A Letter to Our Partners: Why This Work Matters — And Why I Need It Too
To everyone out there doing this work — the real, messy, beautiful, heavy work — this is for you.
Let me start with something simple:
I see you. And I get it.
For more than a decade at Be Strong Families, I’ve walked beside parents, caregivers, youth workers, social workers, and community leaders who carry so much and keep showing up anyway. I don’t just do this work because it matters. I do it because I need it, too.
And right now — as BSF steps more boldly into who we are becoming — I want to say this clearly:
We are building a movement.
A movement grounded in truth-telling, connection, and dignity — built one conversation at a time.
Cafés are conversations.
Our trainings are conversations.
And conversation is how relationships grow strong enough to carry real change.
How Illinois Youth Got The Hair Care Bill Passed
When Illinois youth in care identified hair care as a priority, they didn't just raise awareness—they made history. Through Youth Advisory Boards, young leaders partnered with Be Strong Families and Loyola University Chicago to draft, refine, and pass HB 5097, the nation's first Hair Care Bill. From testimony at the state capitol to co-leading the Annual Hair Care Symposium, these youth transformed lived experience into law. Now, their model shows what's possible when young people lead and adults truly partner.
Learning by Watching: The Generational Impact of Parent Cafés
“The Café starts on the bus,” says Sam Blue of Vision for Children at Risk (VCR), capturing how connection begins long before families sit in a circle. More than a decade ago, while parents gathered to talk, listen, and build community through Parent Cafés, children watched from the sidelines—absorbing lessons about belonging, leadership, and shared strength. One of those children was Sam’s son, Abraham, who today stands at the center as a youth leader and trained host of youth-led #WoWTalk Cafés, carrying forward the same peer-to-peer model he grew up witnessing. His story reflects the quiet, generational ripple of Parent Cafés: when children grow up seeing trust, reflection, and community in action, they don’t just remember it—they become it.
Evanston Families Showed Up Big for the 3rd Annual Family Fun Fest!
On Saturday, August 9, more than 850 people filled the Robert Crown Community Center for our 3rd Annual Evanston is Family Strong Back to School Family Fun Fest, and it was a day to remember!
From the minute doors opened, families were lining up for backpacks and books. By the end of the day, we had given away 1,000 backpacks and 500 books to make sure kids were ready to head back to school strong. The smiles on children’s faces (and the relief on parents’) said it all.