The basement door opens and the warm aroma draws you in like a moth to light.  You step inside to be greeted by smiles glowing beneath fluorescent lights.  The space is modestly decorated with child-drawn crayon portraits and finger paintings, reminiscent of a refrigerator door. The buzz of voices and bursts of laughter harmonize beautifully with the sounds of chiming silverware.  Positive energy everywhere radiates off the stone walls.

People from all walks of life wait, Tupperware in hand, to taste the hot, 100 percent vegan meal that is prepared every Tuesday night at the United Campus Ministry’s Vegan Cooking Workshop.

Just down the street from Ohio University on 18 North Congress, cooking starts at 7 p.m. sharp and the meal is served at approximately 9:30 p.m.  Most people come right as the food is served, but the real bonding happens during preparation.  Volunteers meet each other over a recipe, which always presents a few dilemmas.  Creativity is key during the trials and tribulations of making “vegan cheez.”  Those who start as strangers chop, measure and mix, and by dinnertime, new friendships are created.

The real draw of the Vegan Cooking Workshop (VCW) is not the food, but the fundamental human experience of gathering around a meal cooked from scratch.  The weekly feast creates a sense of connection and community that can be lost on college campuses.

Steve Geisler, an Athens local in his fifties, appreciates VCW for bringing like-minded people from all different places to share similar interests.  “Vegan cooking is much better than going to the bars,” he said.

In reality, only one or two participants are practicing vegans. Eden Kincaid, a, sophomore at OU, tried veganism last year, but due to health reasons, she stopped.  Even after ditching the vegan lifestyle, Kincaid is a regular at VCW.  She describes her VCW experience as “lots of hugging, good eats and good vibes.”

VCW is a way to learn from each other and meet new people without discrimination. People who practice veganism abstain from eating all animal products such as eggs, dairy, honey and meat.  VCW also honors religious eating such as Krishna, avoiding garlic and onions, which are believed to increase passions and ignorance. The workshop only prepares foods that will welcome all religions and cultural practices.

VCW participants enjoy the (very green) view of their vegan spread. Photo by Anna Moore.

The typical vegan crowd, wearing wooly organic cardigans, weaves together flawlessly with the average Ohio University student or townie.  Whether you are a sorority sister or a dreadlock dude, you are welcome.

Each Tuesday’s menu is cleverly themed. Classic breakfast fare is transformed into rosemary hash browns, tofu kale scramble and whole wheat pancakes with warm apple crumble.  Finals week brought the brain food and comforting classics of grilled “vegan cheez” and tomato soup with blueberry muffins and soothing herbal tea.  Even the biggest meal of the year, Thanksgiving, gets a meatless makeover.  One might wonder how Squanto and the Pilgrims would feel about “Tofurkey.”

Tyler Bryan and Halie Cousineau are head chefs here – in charge of menu planning, purchasing produce and organizing menus.  Once they pick a theme for the menu, shoppers keep it local, buying from the Athens Farmers Market and the Farmacy.  Big superstores like Kroger are last resorts.  The ingredients are purchased with monetary donations and funding from the Students Activities Committee.  After all the ingredients are purchased, it is up to volunteers to practice VCW’s motto: “Cook, serve, eat and clean.”

Cousineau says her hand-me-down position of president “just kind of happened.” Eight years ago, Boaz Ramos, a yoga instructor, private chef and practitioner of the Indian “science of life” called Ayurveda, started the Vegan Cooking Workshop, which is put on by the group Conscious Ohio.

“Conscious Ohio creates events to raise consciousness of what you are doing, eating, who you are affecting, and how it is affecting you,” Cousineau explained. Other than VCW, the group holds spiritual discussions, meditates and goes rock climbing and hiking.

Hugs all around for new friends made at VCW. Photo by Anna Moore.

The United Campus Ministries (UCM) rents out their basement kitchen every Tuesday for the vegan meal.  UCM’s mission is “to engage the Ohio University and Athens communities in spiritual growth, community service and work for justice, guided by socially progressive and interfaith values.”  Even though Conscious Ohio doesn’t directly affiliate with UCM, both practice the idea of “radical hospitality.”

After the plates are clean and bellies full, Cousineau and Bryan get stuck with the “clean” end of their motto.  Nonetheless, their happiness and energy don’t falter when the dirty dishes pile up.  The two will stay past 11 p.m. to leave the basement tidier than they found it.  All the time and effort Cousineau puts in is worth it when she sees the happiness one meal can bring.

“The atmosphere leaves you feeling amazing, like you want to sing on your walk home,” Cousineau said. To her, VCW is more than a group. “It is a family and home for so many people, including me.”

The real goal of VCW is service – to serve others and hope that they will be inspired to do the same. “It is all about giving to people. Give food, give love, give a person time to talk or hang out,” Cousineau said.

It does not matter if you are vegetarian, vegan, omnivore or a Krishna.  What matters is who you are and what you give.  Vegan Cooking Workshop allows people to forget diet definitions and enjoy good company and delicious food.

VCW is serving up joy – feel free to go up for seconds, and if you bring a Tupperware you can even take it home.

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