Drawing from their love of food and desire to address the needs of youth in Northwest Pasadena, Jessica Wong and Lauren McGrew developed Food For Thought’s vision in November 2006. Over the last year and a half, Jessica and Lauren have worked to create a double bottom line business. Food For Thought Catering strives to serve excellent food with great service and to employ Northwest Pasadena youth to develop their professional skills.

Food For Thought Catering is based on the biblical story of Nehemiah, who leads and empowers the people of Jerusalem to rebuild their city walls. Food for Thought Catering brings resources and training to Northwest Pasadena and empowers the neighborhood youth to "rebuild their city walls" by becoming exceptional members of their community. This is especially pertinent in the current economy, where youth employment is critical in laying the foundations for fruitful and successful future careers.

Lauren McGrew
Business Manager
Lauren is responsible for the daily management of the office and the bookkeeping. Lauren has also worked as the Food Pantry Coordinator for the Ecumenical Council of Pasadena Area Churches. She oversaw the distribution of groceries to 150 low-income and homeless clients each week. Before her position at ECPAC, Lauren served as a lead cook at Campus by the Sea on Catalina Island.

An inductee to Phi Beta Kappa, Lauren received her B.A. in Psychologyand Economics from UCLA. While a student, Lauren was extensively involved in InterVarsity Bruin Christian Fellowship on campus. A social justice leader during her fourth year, Lauren worked with the Darfur Action Committee to create partnerships between the faith-based community and social activists on campus. As a member of the UC Divestment Taskforce, she was a part of the group responsible for the UC Regents’ and California Legislature’s decisions to divest withholdings from Sudan. Lauren also draws from 2 years of experience marketing and leading with UCLA’s Hunger Project and a two-month intensive internship working with youth in Los Angeles’s Skid Row.


Jessica Wong
Catering Manager
Jessica Wong is responsible for the overall flow of operations in the kitchen, as well as for interacting with clients about their specific catering needs, including menu design and staffing/training of culinary staff. Jessica brings a variety of experiences, including work with non-profit organizations, multiple years of large-scale cooking experience, and an understanding of urban youth. In 2000, Jessica founded a non-profit organization called Bay Area Music Makers (BAMM), which offered musical education and lessons to low-income children in the South San Francisco area. Through the endeavor, she began to recognize the needs and lack of opportunities available to youth from low-income areas.

While a student at UCLA, Jessica served as area leader and cooking coordinator for InterVarsity Bruin Christian Fellowship from 2003-2006. She planned and organized conferences for upwards of 150 students, gaining experience in volunteer recruitment, leadership development, fundraising, audio/visual art, and event planning and execution. She also developed a cooking program, where she trained dozens of college freshmen and sophomores in the culinary arts through cooking for hundreds of events, ranging from 10-200 people. Jessica also founded her own college catering business, Out of the Kitchen Catering. Her business delivered ready-made meals in the UCLA area, in an effort to provide healthy, inexpensive meals to college students.