June has so much tasty food as well as delicious events to  celebrate that we can barely count! National Doughnut Day (6/2), Egg Day (6/3), Cheese Day (6/4), Chocolate Ice Cream Day (6/7), Strawberry Rhubarb Pie (6/9), Corn on the Cob Day (6/11), Eat your Vegetables Day (6/17), International Sushi Day (6/18), and  Chocolate Eclair Day (6/22). To top it all off, International Picnic Day is June 18th, then two days later, the first day of summer!

Many of these featured foods make for scrumptious picnic fare. Need some ideas for salads, main courses, desserts and drinks? This list will wow you with its variety - 90+ Summer Picnic Recipes!

Don't forget to bring some corn on the cob to the picnic. Here are 25 ways to dress up corn on the cob to make it extra special.

Just so you're aware, it seems that bringing slices of cheese and a box of crackers is no longer cutting it in the picnic arena. Building the ultimate, artistic "cheese board" is now all the rage. Feast you eyes on this Pinterest site on how to build the perfect cheese platter. They're almost too lovely to eat.

June really might be the tastiest month of them all! So how are you going to celebrate?

We always welcome new volunteers! Here are our current opportunities:

• Monday Driver, Route 8 (Mid-Airport Rd.)
• Monday Driver, Route 16 (Airport Rd./Jaguar Dr.)
• Wednesday Driver, Route 1 (Mid Rufina Rd.)
• Friday Driver, Route 9 (Alta Vista)
• Friday Driver, Route 16 (Airport Rd./Jaguar Dr.)
• Thursday & Friday PM kitchen shift (1-4 pm)

Don't let their smiles and halos fool you!

If there was a simple action that was universally recognized, highly contagious, lowered blood pressure and heart rate, increased breathing, made people feel more connected and joyful, and increased life span, would you be willing to do it? Well, there is! A genuine smile has been shown to do all of those things and more! Click here for an interesting article on the Surprising Psychology of Smiling and read more about the benefits of and different type of smiles.

Although June 15th is Smile Power Day, our volunteer drivers use this superpower every time they greet our clients. Not only does Kitchen Angels deliver hot meals each day, they also deliver friendship and the warmth that comes with a smile. We can all use more smiles in our lives. Thanks for sharing yours with our homebound clients!

Ron Gutman's TED talk on the Hidden Power of Smiling

	Judy Costlow has been an Angels Night Out Ambassador since the start!

Kitchen Angels' signature fundraiser, Angels Night Out, started back in 1998 with six  participating restaurants. In the past 19 years, we've reached out to new restaurants, cultivated relationships with restaurant owners, and grown this fundraiser into the very special community event that it has become. We're very proud of that fact, and thank every volunteer, restaurant, and diner for contributing to its success.

Now that the event includes 35 restaurants and almost 100 volunteers, it requires a much larger team to coordinate the planning, advertising, training, and communications. Kitchen Angels would like to thank some of the key players who helped make this the best, and most profitable,  Angels Night Out in our history.

Thanks for helping out as an Angels Night Out Liaison, Stephanie G!

For the past few years, we've utilized a team of Angels Night Out Liaisons who assist in retrieving contracts from the restaurants, marketing to new restaurants, and following up after the event to make sure all of the donation checks are in. If you know anything about restaurant life, you'll know that these are no small tasks. A big round of applause goes out to Barbara Shoemaker, Haila Harvey, Stephanie Gonzales, and OJ Niswonger for acting as volunteer ambassadors this year.

Barbara has officially joined the Angels Night Out committee for next year, along with Carmon McCumbee, staff, and Board members. We're already working on how to streamline the event. Barb will be the "Captain" in charge of a larger number of liaisons, who in turn will train and assist the restaurant ambassadors. We're excited to work with Barb who is such an energetic, creative, and get-it-done type of woman! If you're interested in becoming part of the Angels Night Out team, speak with Lauren. Thanks everyone!