2010 Cocina de Coprodeli

Cocina de Coprodeli is our annual Spring event featuring a fusion of Latin cuisine. We invite top chefs from Chicago and Washington DC to whip up their latest & greatest Latin inspired dishes.  Guests are able to “rub elbows” with the chefs, who are on hand for the duration of the event, and try to squeeze out secrets to their delicious recipes or learn a few tricks of the trade.

Want to help? Join our Event Planning committee, sponsor the event, donate to the auction...and definitely attend the event with friends and family!  For more information on volunteer or event sponsorship opportunities or for information on how your business can participate in our auction, please contact Sasha at sashac@coprodeliusa.org

2010 Cocina de Coprodeli Details
Chicago: On Sunday, March 21, 2010, Coprodeli USA will host its 7th annual Cocina de Coprodeli: Local Focus, Global Impact. This event is BIGGER and BETTER than ever before, so you won't want to miss out!

The outstanding line-up of chefs includes:

Gustavo Castaneda, Zocalo Restaurant and Tequila Bar
John Manion, Branch 27
Gloria Hafer, After School Matters
Enrique Cortes, Ole Lounge
and desserts by Black Dog Gelato

Our premier chefs will entertain and educate our guests with:
· Interactive cooking classes
· Cooking demonstrations and
· Prepared hors d’oeuvres

NEW to this year's Cocina in Chicago:
Sommelier Dave Johnston from the Everest Room will provide guests a high-end wine tasting and certified Cicerone James Miller will indulge patrons in a craft micro-beer tasting. And Brassfield Winery will provide wine for the evening. This highly anticipated annual social event will raise money for nutrition and agriculture projects in the most devastated communities in Peru.

Washington DC: Join DC’s most progressive Peruvian culinary exploration! On Thursday April 1, 2010, Coprodeli USA will host its 4th annual Cocina de Coprodeli, in Washington DC. Up to 200 guests will gather at 1777 F. Street, NW in downtown DC to learn about Latin cuisine, drinks, and help raise money for nutrition and agriculture projects in the most devastated communities in Peru.

We are inviting 6 chefs from nearby Latin restaurants to prepare Latin inspired dishes of their choice. And *NEW* this year, we are inviting several guest bartenders to whip up their spin on the pisco cocktail, thanks to Melanie Asher and Macchu Pisco's generous donation of pisco! Details coming....so stay tuned!


Sample Media Coverage:
Chicago coverage of the event

Washington D.C. Cocina pictures

New York City Cocina pictures

Cocina Recipes
One Two Three Four

Celebración de Coprodeli is our annual, and largest, Fall fundraising event. Each year Coprodeli volunteers, donors and friends gather to eat, drink, dance and raise funds to support Coprodeli’s programs in Peru. The focus of the proceeds varies from year to year to match the current, imminent needs of Coprodeli Peru. Coprodeli’s current priority, in response to the devastating 7.9 earthquake that struck the Ica Region of Peru in August 2007, is rebuilding the most severely affected cities in the Region, including Chincha, Pisco, Canete and Ica, and bringing development to the area. Leveraging past success and experience, Coprodeli aims to build 10,000 new homes, schools, and health clinics, and provide micro business support for 120 entrepreneurs and their businesses by 2010.

Celebración de Coprodeli in Chicago (9th Annual) – Saturday October 24, 2009

Celebración de Coprodeli in DC (3rd Annual) – Thursday, October 29, 2009

Thanks for all your support!

Coprodeli Bike Drive

The Working Bikes Cooperative has partnered with Coprodeli USA to send almost 1,000 bikes to Peru where they have been put to good use in the Coprodeli schools, orphanages and daycare centers. The simple joy of learning to ride a bicycle can now be offered to the Coprodeli Kids - an opportunity they would otherwise not have. Thanks to Working Bikes, the Coprodeli Kids now enjoy such things as bicycle clubs and regular bike hikes which take them out of their poor neighborhoods. Coprodeli is planning a bicycle shop micro-enterprise with some of the donated bikes. Future bike donations will also be used to provide adults with personal transportation which often means the difference between keeping a job and unemployment. Sincerest thanks to Lee Ravenscroft and the Working Bikes volunteers and to all the Coprodeli volunteers who have help disassemble bikes and load them into shipping containers bound for Peru.

Coprodeli Clothing Drive

Coprodeli USA hosts an annual Clothing Drive in the Old St. Patrick’s Church parking lot on the southeast corner of Adams and Desplaines. The day of the drive a team of hard-working volunteers take shifts to receive, pack and load the back of a truck trailer with gently used clothing, shoes, linens, household supplies, books, toys, medical supplies, recreational equipment and more to be sent to Peru for distribution through Coprodeli’s Social Outreach Centers. Donations are accepted the day of the drive only. Coprodeli volunteers have weathered the cold, heat and the rain in order to send much needed supplies to the people of Peru.

Save the Date
9th Annual Coprodeli Clothing Drive in Chicago – June 14, 2009.
Donations will be accepted from 7am – 1pm at the truck trailer staged in the parking lot on the southeast corner of Adams and Desplaines. (See map)

Please click on Peru’s Wish List to see greatly needed items, along with other donation instructions.

This year we are proud to collaborate with St. Louis Packaging, Inc., Shorr Packaging Corporation, Monroe Transportation Services and Keenan Transit. Thanks to the support of businesses like these, many of whom donate goods and services to us year after year, we are able to help meet the basic needs of some of the most vulnerable children and families in Peru. We thank each of these businesses for their commitment to humanitarian issues and just, dignified living for all.

If you would like information on how you can volunteer at this year’s Clothing Drive please contact our office at admin@coprodeliusa.org.

2008 Clothing Drive Details

Despite a torrential downpour an incredibly hard-working team of 75+ volunteers tackled towers of empty boxes and heaps of new and gently used donations to pack over 40,000 articles of clothing, house-wares, medical and school supplies, books, and toys for the 8th Annual Coprodeli Clothing Drive held in the parking lot of Old St. Patrick’s Church on Sunday, June 8th. Thanks to the collaboration of Coprodeli and OSP friends, the Near North Montessori School, Share Your Soles, Nike Town, One Step Ahead, Gigi’s Closette, and others, 570 boxes of humanitarian aid will be shipped to Peru and distributed through Coprodeli’s Social Outreach Centers. The 40 foot container will arrive in Peru later this month and goods will be distributed by our team on the ground.

Coprodeli Medical Corps

Medical professionals from all backgrounds are invited to support the work of the Coprodeli medical and dental clinics through obtaining product donations, assisting with instrument repair and purchasing, and by volunteering in the clinics. Due to the nature of the work in Peru, medical doctors, lab technicians and nurses need to have Spanish fluency while dentists only need a very basic understanding of the language.

Coprodeli Pilgrimage Walk (Camino de Santiago)

Engage with travelers from all over the world and be transformed as you share your life, love, and laughter with everyone you meet. Gain a new perspective on your faith - and at the same time help to change lives. Join Coprodeli Founder Padre Miguel Ranera in his native Spain and follow the ancient pilgrimage path to Santiago de Compostela. This enlightening opportunity aims to expand one's faith while raising money for impoverished families in Peru . The annual walk takes participants 150 kilometers through northern Spain along the Camino de Santiago de Compostela - the same path pilgrims have followed for centuries to the burial site of St. James the Elder. With the exception of the tombs of Saints Peter and Paul in Rome , St. James' tomb is the only shrine of an original apostle located in Europe. Take part in this life-changing pilgrimage and help change the lives of the men, women and children served by Coprodeli's comprehensive programs.
Save the Date
Camino de Santiago – June 5-14, 2009 Trip registration CLOSED
Learn more about the Camino de Santiago de Compostela Pilgrimage.

“... I struggle to wrap words around one of the most profoundly enriching experiences of my life. How do you explain the miracle of fifteen strangers from four countries coming together for seven days united by a single purpose: to raise money for the poorest of Peru? At least that is what we thought the purpose was. However, the Camino is known to have a mind of its own. It calls together those who have something to share with one another. … We laughed and cried, we limped and lay in the grass like road-kill. We sang and prayed. We walked together and alone. We engaged with each other and with the stranger on the road … Strangers have become friends in one very short yet powerful week. And we know that we were called to serve the poor and one another. What could be better than that? Buen Camino!”

- Mary Evers, 2004 & 2005

Internship Program

Join our Team! Opportunities to intern with Coprodeli USA are available! For more information or to apply for an Internship, please contact or send your resume and cover letter to Alycia Ebbinghaus at aebbinghaus@coprodeliusa.org. Position descriptions are available by clicking on each Internship position.

Internship Opportunities

Grant Writing - Graduate

Corporate Social Responsibility - Graduate

Grant Writing - Undergraduate

Fundraising & Business Development - Undergraduate

Marketing - Undergraduate

Translation - Undergraduate

Working Trip to Peru

Spend one week in Peru with other volunteers learning about Coprodeli's programs promoting development and dignified living for the poorest of the poor, and contribute to their efforts while working in Coprodeli's schools, orphanages and/or medical centers. Your time and attention are precious resources valuable to the children and families in Callao, Pachacutec, and Ica. Expenses are estimated at $550 plus airfare to Lima. Airport transfers, accommodations, and two meals daily are provided. In addition, volunteers have the option of visiting Cusco, the Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu for an additional fee. The Spring trip will be April 22 - May 1, 2009, and the Fall trip September 2-11. For more details on the working trip, including an overview of the week's activities and answers to frequently asked questions, please refer to the volunteer manual below or contact Sasha Chetyrkina at sashac@coprodeliusa.org.

Volunteer Manual