Reflecting on KidShare and the Power of Community Through Food

KidShare is a truly special event—and this year marked its 25th anniversary. Hosted by the Harry & Rose Samson Family JCC, the event raises critical funds to support their camp programs in so many meaningful ways. It draws a huge, joyful crowd from across the Milwaukee Jewish community, and we’ve been honored to be part of it every single year since we opened Hannah’s Kitchen.

At its heart, KidShare is a fundraising event that brings together Milwaukee’s top restaurants, caterers, and chefs for an incredible night of food, connection, and generosity. Guests purchase tickets to attend and enjoy tasting plates and drinks from a wide variety of local food businesses, with all proceeds going toward JCC programs—especially those that make camp accessible to every child, regardless of financial circumstance. The evening raises funds that ensure all kids can experience the joy, friendship, and personal growth that Jewish summer camp provides.

I still remember our first year—we did a “goodnight treat” with a take-home dessert: our version of a compost cookie, packed with that sweet-salty-crunchy magic. As people left the event, it was such a fun, personal way to connect. I’ll never forget hearing JCC CEO Mark Shapiro revving up the crowd for those cookies and even calling out my name. For someone who doesn’t love being the center of attention, it meant so much to see the work of me and my team celebrated like that.

Those early years we stuck with the take-home dessert, including during the year of COVID, when we were proud to create a dessert for the boxed meal version of the event. Each year, we challenged ourselves to come up with something new and exciting.

As Hannah’s Kitchen grew, we were invited to move into the dinner room—offering two small-plate dishes right at the heart of the event in the main ballroom starting in 2023. But since we love being a strong partner in the community, I actually requested to keep doing the dessert room too! This year was our third year doing both.

It’s always amazing to see everyone and to witness people’s reactions to our dishes. This year we served a Middle Eastern lamb stew and our signature Moroccan salad (also featured on the café menu!). Last year we smoked our own salad and served it on a challah crostini with herb cream cheese, alongside kafta with tahini. Our first year in the dinner room we featured shawarma on a skewer with tahini and pita.

Our desserts over the years have ranged from compost cookies to brownie and blondie bites, banana mousse, Dubai-style chocolate, and more. We always aim to offer something fun, memorable, and delicious.

One of the most rewarding parts of KidShare is not only connecting with the community, but also meeting so many of the other talented chefs and food professionals from around Milwaukee. Many of them work with us throughout the year when they need kosher meals for their events, but we rarely get to meet in person. This year, while we were setting up, one chef came over to introduce himself—he’d just received kosher meals from us the day before and wanted to say thank you. He told me when they end up with extra kosher plates, he eats them—and loves them. As I walked around, others recognized me for the same reason. The appreciation for not only showing up to support the event, but for the quality of the food we provide, was overwhelming.

It reminded me why we do this. It inspired me to keep being creative, to keep connecting through food, and to keep finding ways to collaborate with the incredible chefs and culinary teams we’re lucky to have in Milwaukee.