Samantha Barnes
Kitchen Kid Founder
Lynn Downey
Enrichment & Outreach;
Culinary Coach
Lynn remembers her very first “Kitchen Kid” moment. At the ripe old age of 9, she and her best friend created this epic classic recipe: Break an egg. Add Italian dressing. Microwave. Brilliance. Lynn’s been in the kitchen ever since. After being a summer camp counselor for 7 years, Lynn ventured into the world of serving food at a hippie cafe, an American chain restaurant, coffee houses and locally owned bistros. Moving to LA to pursue acting, Lynn also spent time as a substitute teacher. Kitchen Kid is the perfect combination of her two passions: working with food and with kids. She is currently in post-production for a cooking show called “The Can Do Kitchen,” empowering amateurs to cook like the pros and not be afraid to make mistakes. It will be premiering this spring on Jewish Life Television! Lynn loves the enthusiasm and ability her Kitchen Kids bring to class. She’ll never forget teaching a 2-year-old proper cutting technique and then walking by later, only to see him keeping his fingers away from the plastic knife’s “teeth” and chanting to himself, “back and forth, back and forth.” Lynn believes we’re never too young, nor too old to learn or to eat!
Amy Rosa
Marketing & Enrichment;
Culinary Coach
Amy’s love for the culinary world started at a very young age. One of her fondest memories involves Amy and her sister creating their first “recipe,” which consisted of butter, vanilla and sugar. Talk about genius, (or so they thought!) Amy continued her passion for exploration by moving to Boston after graduating from college, to teach middle school. Her love for the sun — and her sister — brought her to California where she enrolled in a culinary program. Excited by the techniques learned through culinary school, Amy was inspired to teach young chefs in Los Angeles. Amy loves being a Culinary Coach at Kitchen Kid as it allows her to combine her love of teaching with her love for cooking. Amy’s hands-on approach to teaching creates a positive environment, encouraging children to try new things, explore their creativity and most importantly to have fun!
Kari Weiss Sharp
Administrative Coordinator;
Culinary Coach
Kari began her career in the health and fitness industry on the artistic end –taking photos of food as a professional photographer. Always living a healthy lifestyle and encouraging healthy eating, she decided to pursue a career as a nutritionist. With a bachelor’s degree in art from the University of Miami, she is now back in school to become a registered dietician. Her ties within her community are all connected by health, nutrition, and cooking. She is currently a docent for Live Well Kids Nutrition, a member of the Blue Zones Project Cooking Class committee, and the liaison for a Redondo Beach elementary school to Alliance for a Healthier Generation. Blending artistic creativity and nutritional knowledge, she truly enjoys engaging the children while teaching an important cooking lesson.
Sara Lesser
Culinary Coach
Sara grew up in the kitchen. Dinners were always cooked together as a family, with Sara’s father providing guidance and tips. And, dinners were always eaten as a family, too. Even today, Sara’s family gets together for family cooking lessons, or to find new and interesting restaurants to try. Aside for a passion for food, Sara has a passion for working with children through various camps and classroom teaching opportunities. Kitchen Kid allows her to combine her two loves and explore a creative and delicious realm of teaching.
Sarah Manson
Culinary Coach
Sarah grew up in Ohio where she formed a love for baking at an early age, and particularly loved making desserts for holidays and birthdays. Sarah’s first baking contest was in the 7th grade when she perfected brownies, and by high school she became known as the “class baker”. Sarah is very passionate about food and loves being able to share that passion with others. Currently she is pursuing a masters in School Psychology. Sarah loves working with children and is thrilled at the prospect of making this her career. She loves working with Kitchen Kid because it gives her the opportunity to teach and inspire children, while spending more time in the kitchen.
Robyn Meaney
Culinary Coach
Robyn joins Kitchen Kid with a “tapas style background” — she has worked with kids of all ages and in various settings, including the classroom, beach camp, tutoring, and babysitting. Robyn has a strong passion for health and wellness that focuses on nutrition. She is passionate about fueling young bodies through healthy food. As a kid Robyn loved to cook and always helped her mom prepare a home-made meal nearly every night. She still makes most of her family’s meals from scratch, and she loves sharing how easy it can be to make fresh, healthy, yummy meals with others. When it comes to food, Robyn truly loves making, eating, and sharing it! Kitchen Kid creates the perfect opportunity for Robyn to blend her love of working with kids with her love of working with food.
John Pope
Culinary Coach
John’s enthusiasm and love of cooking began in college, after he became extremely dissatisfied with relying upon his school cafeteria or fast food for his daily meals and devoted much of his free time to learning how to make the most basic of meals. This era can be referred to as “The Age of Hamburger Helper”. Graduating and moving to Los Angeles, John was exposed to a whole new culinary landscape and continued to expand on and better his techniques, eventually getting hired as a cook for MOE Deli Food Truck, working food festivals and private events all around Southern California. Still working full time as a writer, a majority of John’s cooking is for friends and loved ones, though he is constantly working to improve his abilities and is looking forward to teaching children the same skills and appreciation of food that it took him nearly 20 years to develop.
Caryn Steese
Culinary Coach
Caryn has been teaching preschool age children for over 21 years. Over the last several years, she developed a new preschool course, “Food Fun”, for 3 to 5 year olds, focusing on food tasting, simple preparations, and healthy eating tips. Cooking and family are two of her passions. Family recipes, dinners, and holiday traditions are very special to Caryn. On most Sundays, you can expect to find Caryn and her husband at home swapping recipes, watching sports, and catching up with her two grown daughters. Caryn and her family love cooking outdoors. She believes everything tastes better cooked outdoors — grill, barbecue, or smoker!
Sara Switzman
Culinary Coach
By age six Sara had cooked French toast “from coast to coast” across Canada and her love of cooking, and traveling, has only grown since then. Sara grew up in Toronto but caught the traveling bug early and between backpacking through Europe and various other global adventures she has visited over 30 countries – learning a thing or two about each local cuisine along the way. An experienced elementary school teacher with an M.A. in Education, Sara is a strong believer in the constructivist approach to learning – leveraging kids’ interests to teach them core principles. Teaching the kids in her classroom math and science through baking has translated to doing the same with her three and a half year old son Jasper (who cooks a mean banana bread! Just ask and he’ll share the recipe) who has taken to the kitchen like a natural thanks to his mom. Cooking is a fun and meaningful way to learn and it tastes great!
Carolyn Thalin
Culinary Coach
Carolyn discovered her passion for cooking while attending a culinary camp as a child. After obtaining a degree in Food Science and Human Nutrition, she moved to Verona, Italy and began traveling throughout Europe and the United States, gaining an appreciation for a variety of cuisines and the significance of food in culture. After observing the effects various diets have on health, she has become dedicated to teaching young children how to respect food. She believes providing kids with the freedom to be creative while exploring colors, tastes, and textures is the first step in cultivating the many pleasures food has to offer.
Kerri Van Auken
Culinary Coach
From as early on as she can remember, Kerri was a fixture in her mother’s kitchen — whether her mother wanted her to be or not. But soon Kerri and her brother were left to their own devices to perform their own cooking show, “Kids in the Kitchen”, in the reflection of the window above the sink. From baking treats for friends, perfecting Italian salad dressing recipes, and cooking the occasional family dinner, Kerri has been “playing” in the kitchen her entire life. While living in Chicago and starting up her brand of custom party foods, Kerri began working with kids as a volunteer instructor with Common Threads, where she taught cooking and nutrition classes to inner city kids. In 2011 she packed up and moved to LA to pursue acting and find a “day job” that didn’t involve pushing paper. Enter Kitchen Kid, where Kerri could return to her young roots and help others discover the fun of cooking, while reaping the lifelong benefits of culinary knowledge, creativity and confidence that come with it.
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