Humanize. Heal. Transform.
Chefs are carrying more than the weight of a kitchen — they’re carrying long hours, exhaustion, burnout, trauma, addiction, and battles no one sees.
Yes, Chef! Behind the Apron™️ exists to change that.
Through storytelling, mental-health support and subsidies, retreat programs, and community care, we give chefs a safe place to be seen, heard, and supported.
We honor the person behind the plate — their struggles, their resilience, their craft — and we remind every chef that they are valued, they are needed, and they are never alone.
Every dollar helps us share stories, host retreats, and fund life-changing support for the people who feed us every day.
Many chefs struggle silently with mental health challenges and feel overlooked. Yes, Chef! Behind the Apron™️ offers community support and storytelling for culinary professionals so they feel valued, connected, and regain their passion for cooking.
Thank You for Getting Involved!
Hi there,
Thank you for your interest in joining the Yes, Chef! Behind the Apron™️ movement!
We’re excited to connect with you and will be in touch soon with next steps. Together, we can celebrate chefs, support mental wellness, and make a meaningful impact in our community.
If you have any questions in the meantime, feel free to reach out.
Thank you for your support!
— Elaine
Founder & Photographer
Yes, Chef! Behind the Apron™️
Whether you're facing mental health struggles, emotional distress, alcohol or drug use concerns, or just need someone to talk to, DIAL 988. You are not alone.
Our Mission
Yes, Chef! Behind the Apron™️ is an organization dedicated to advancing food equity and mental health awareness through chef-centered storytelling and community engagement.
By documenting and sharing the powerful, often unseen stories of culinary professionals, we work to humanize the individuals behind the apron, raise critical funds to combat food insecurity, and provide access to wellness resources for those working in high-stress kitchen environments.
Our mission is to inspire empathy, activate community support, and create systemic impact—through the intersection of art, advocacy, and food.
Vision Statement
We envision a world where chefs are not only celebrated for their craft, but supported as individuals—where their stories spark empathy, their influence drives change, and their leadership helps eliminate food insecurity and mental health stigma in the culinary industry.
Impact Statement
Through compelling visual storytelling, collaborative community initiatives, and direct partnerships with food banks and mental health advocates, Yes, Chef! Behind the Apron™️ has already:
- Funded over 70,000 meals through regional food banks
- Elevated the personal stories of over 20+ chefs through portrait-driven campaigns
- Created platforms for dialogue around wellness, recovery, and resilience in the kitchen
- Laid the foundation for a growing national movement that merges art, advocacy, and action
With continued funding and partnership, our goal is to scale this model nationally—expanding our reach, deepening our impact, and empowering even more chefs to serve not just food, but meaningful change.
Meet our 2025-2026 Sponsors
Meet our Fiscal Sponsor
Humanitarian Social Innovations (46-4779591) treats funds received for the purpose of this program as restricted under the charitable trust doctrine. All funds, minus administrative fees, are dedicated to the purpose of this program and will not be used to pay the expenses of another.