We’ve hosted many retreats here at Copper House, but none quite as restorative, joyful, self reflective, connective, nourishing and fun as the one curated by Elaine Zelker, the self-described heart and voice behind Yes Chef! Behind the Apron, an organization whose mission is to raise awareness about the struggles of chefs–those who often stress out, burnout, and give so much, often receiving little in return.
From start to finish, retreat day–Yes Chef! Aprons Off–is all about making sure these chefs are beautifully cared for. As they begin to arrive, we greet them with cool, moist rosemary-scented towelettes, mugs of Copper House coffee and sumptuous sweet and savory bites. Throughout breakfast, they take their turn enjoying a ten-minute chair massage. In a crowd like this, you’d think a few might decline, but they all enthusiastically accepted, emerging from the massage room with a gaze of peaceful gratitude.
Alexa Drubay Fong continues the day with her laughter movement experience. The group is feeling her love and, in turn, paying it forward.
After the bumptious experience of group laughter, David takes everyone into the forest. It’s quiet now. Together they read a poem about how easy it is to forget time for ourselves, restorative time.
Everyone wanders into the woods and finds a quiet place of reflection, then after a while everyone comes back to the circle to share their new insights.
Time for lunch. No chefs allowed in the kitchen today. The only thing for them to do is to order the pizza of their dreams and then sit down, relax, and enjoy one another’s company.
It’s one of those toasty summer days, so after lunch everyone heads to the conference room for a wellness presentation by the team from Saint Luke’s Penn Foundation. These chefs take in their message of hope and belief in the resilience of the human spirit and also discover they are not alone. Regardless of their challenges, there’s a team ready to help them fully realize their emotional, physical, and spiritual potential.
As the chefs prepare to depart Copper House, we serve up our signature house-made lemon sorbet and plant-based vanilla ice cream and notice the subtle shift in their spirit. Many had arrived that morning a little worn and weary–many having worked nearly everyday at Musikfest which ended the night before–and they were leaving refreshed, renewed, appreciated and with a deeper connection with one another, which is exactly our hope for every group who comes here.
A New Culinary Offering: The Taco Bar