Bringing Clark-Fulton Together through the Love of Food
Story by Volunteer Writer, Lexi Moncrief
Peggi brings passion, energy, entrepreneurship and amazing food to any crowd, and through this year’s Rally CLE grant process and event day, she wanted to take her newly opened restaurant in the Clark-Fulton neighborhood, Cha’firos, to the next level of welcome.
As a veteran resident leader of Rally CLE, now participating in her second annual event, the life-long Clark-Fulton resident built upon the momentum started with her project team last year.
With a Rally CLE grant in 2021, Peggi invested in starting an after-school cooking class named “Cha’firos Kids” and bought kitchen supplies and intentionally guided young people in honing their skills while making omelets and empanadas. She listened to the children sharing about their day and didn’t hesitate to let someone know how to hold a knife correctly.
While her mission for this year’s grant was similar to last year, her project took a different spin. Peggi welcomed over forty people into her restaurant from Korean Central Presbyterian Church, Cove City Church and King’s Church. At Cha’firos, she serves Puerto Rican cuisine with soul, and together, the group helped improve Peggi’s current building into a more inviting and spacious environment for families and children, including those from her after-school cooking class.
“I am very fortunate to have a space where I can teach and share my love with the community, and I’m looking forward to growing the space even more in the future,” says Peggi. “The highlight of the weekend for me was to see different cultures come together to understand, listen, and be present in the Clark-Fulton neighborhood.”
Not only is Peggi an invested community member, but she is passionate about teaching kids how to make healthy meals on a budget. “Food, nutrition and eating healthy on a budget has always been a part of my life for as long as I can remember,” says Peggi.”I remember what it was like to live in a food desert. If I can make it easier for a family or child who experiences that, it means a lot to me to offer that support.”
Over the course of this year’s Rally CLE project day, the team helped Peggi with different tasks at her restaurant ranging from organizing the storage room and building new shelving, signage, and benches, to cleaning the outside of the restaurant and transforming the empty field nearby into a parking lot. The completion of these projects now allows Peggi to have a more comfortable and organized space for her guests and students.
“I want people of all ages to feel at home in my restaurant, to enjoy food and to share God’s love,” says Peggi. Come visit, meet Peggi and enjoy all the beauty of the Clark-Fulton neighborhood. Cha’Firos is located at 2886 W 25th St, Cleveland.