Parent educator and therapist Cristina Young will present “Managing Difficult Moments with Teens,” a conversation about mental health, substance use, and tactics for deepening communication with teens in an effort to maintain strong connections during turbulent times, on Thursday, March 4th at 10am.  The talk is the third in a series of The Community Fund of Darien’s “Our Darien” events this year designed to educate parents about the dangers of substance use, youth mental health and how they can best support their teens.  Registration for this discussion, sponsored by The Depot Youth Center and YWCA Parent Awareness, is free and required at www.communityfunddarien.org. 

Cristina Young is a licensed clinical social worker (LCSW) in private practice in Greenwich, CT. Cristina has more than 25 years experience providing professional support to children, adolescents, adults, and families in a variety of settings, including schools, hospitals, and residential treatment centers. She has lived and worked in the Fairfield County area for almost 20 years. Prior to opening her private practice, Cristina worked as a parenting educator, school counselor, admissions officer, and teacher. She received her Master’s in Social Work from the University of Southern California and her bachelor’s and teaching degrees from Barnard College, Columbia University.

 In the early months of the pandemic, The Community Fund of Darien and the Darien YMCA came together to discuss a community building project and realized that many residents were spending a great deal of time at home with family, doing a lot of cooking, and having meals together.  This was the inspiration for the Darien Cooks! Community Cookbook, a treasury of recipes to feed the soul, local families, and our community.  Original recipe submissions for the cookbook are now being accepted until March 1st at www.communityfunddarien.org.  Darien Cooks! will be available in mid-May; pre-orders are currently being taken on the website for $50 each.  All proceeds will support TCF and YMCA community programs. 

Darien Cooks! will feature custom artwork by Darien's resident artist extraordinaire, Nobu Miki, and her cover art will also be available as a beautiful glass cutting board available for purchase on the website for $35.  Both make wonderful gifts and are sure to become a go-to source for delicious meals and a precious keepsake for years to come!

Submitted recipes must be original and should include the best time of year to serve (Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter or Any Season.)  The origin or a great family story about the recipe is welcome!  Full details and guidelines are found on the www.communityfunddarien.org website (click “Darien Cooks!”)

The community may also contribute to the project as an underwriter; participant names will be listed in the back of the cookbook. Individual underwriting options are found by clicking the “Pre-Order Cookbook” tab on the website.  Sponsorship opportunities are available for local businesses; levels and benefits can also be found on the website.

“Everyone has their favorite family recipe and what better way to build and strengthen our community than sharing our love of food.  Through this cookbook and partnership with The Community Fund we’ll not only share our timeless family treasures, but we’ll also support our families, friends and neighbors.” Jennifer Gardner, Darien YMCA

“Sharing a recipe, like sharing a meal is a gift from the heart. We saw the cookbook as a means to capture this moment in time as well as to celebrate this special town. We hope this project brings people together over a common bond of a love for food, and a home cooked meal while supporting our neighbors.” – Janet King, The Community Fund of Darien

The Community Fund of Darien and the Darien YMCA hopes that through this initiative to support local community projects, residents can be a part of local history with their submission and will ultimately enjoy paging through their neighbors’ recipes to create newfound favorites for their own families.