History
Cory’s Kitchen was founded in October of 1996 at Faith Community Church in West Covina , California after the tragic murder of one of the young men of our church. Cory Stanfield was a 23 year old Christian who truly had a servants heart. Cory worked with the youth groups of 3 different churches teaching outdoor skills such as rock climbing, water and snow skiing, backpacking, etc. He also was a proficient Bible instructor.

At Cory’s funeral, I sat with his father consoling three of his former high school friends. Using verses that Cory had marked in his Bible, his father and I had the privilege of introducing these young men to Christ.

Shortly after Cory’s funeral I was approached by a Bible Study Leader at our church asking if my study group would be interested in donating money to purchase food for a member of our congregation who had broken his leg in a traffic accident. Being a diabetic, his prognosis for healing was expected to be rather slow and he would need financial support for an extended period of time. We donated some money, but knew that it wouldn’t last very long. God planted the seed of an idea that grew into Cory’s Kitchen, Inc.

Working within our local community, collecting donated food from grocery chains and warehouse outlets, we were able to put together a program that allowed us to feed a family of 4 for a week at a cost of $25 per family. From our initial operations as an emergency food distributor, we grew to offer other needed services. We found a host of hurting people who simply needed some assistance in making decisions or in learning new skills that would allow them to succeed. And we have delivered those much needed services in a powerful way. I can’t begin to count the number of people who have benefited from our program. At last count, we conservatively estimated that 18,000 people are served each year at Cory’s Kitchen.

A Faith-based, non-profit organization
In July of 2001, Cory’s Kitchen incorporated as a non-profit, charitable organization called Cory's Kitchen, Inc. We have a core group of about 30 volunteers including counselors, food handlers, typists, data entry operators, teachers, and drivers. Additionally, the local Christain College (Azusa Pacific University) and the local Community College (Mount San Antonio Junior College) supply a steady stream of new volunteers each week to help us with our task.

We have no paid staff members. Every penny donated to Cory's Kitchen is used only for the benefit of our clients. In fact, even our distribution facilities were genersously donated to us by Hector & Brenda Pinto (owners of Quality Material Handling, Inc., in Azusa, CA) from July of 2001 through January of 2005. The only overhead cost in the operation of Cory's Kitchen was for equipment such as refrigerators/freezers, office materials, groceries, and transportation costs.

As of April 1, 2005 we moved into our present location at 1418 Arrow Hwy. in Irwindale. While the overhead cost has increased, it has enabled Cory's to step up to the next level; offering better services, more often, with better expansion potential.

No cost is ever passed on to our clients. Everything they receive from food to training is absolutely free. They can participate in or reject any part of our program. No one is coerced into any portion of our program.