Mario Batali is a celebrity chef who was raised in Seattle by Italian immigrant parents. He studied abroad in Spain before graduating from Rutgers University. Batali went on to train at Le Cordon Bleu in London before becoming an apprentice of Marco Pierre White. He is now known for bringing Italian cuisine to New York City. Batali established the Mario Batali Foundation to ensure children have access to education, nutrition, and healthcare. The foundation supports organizations like The Lunchbox Fund in South Africa and the Food Bank For New York City. Batali continues to actively support hunger relief efforts through fundraising and partnerships.

1. Boy’s Brigade
Citizenship Stage 2
Mario Batali

2. Introduction
- Mario was raised in Seattle, Washington by Marilyn Batali and Armandino Batali, who
worked for Boeing for most of Mario’s childhood. He spent his high school years
studying in Madrid, Spain before attending Rutgers University for Spanish Theatre and
Business Management
- During his college years, he worked for a Stromboli restaurant and bar near the Rutgers
campus called ‘Stuff Yer Face’ in New Brunswick, New Jersey. After graduating, he
attended Le Cordon Bleu in London for a few short months before taking an
apprenticeship with revered Chef Marco Pierre White in London at the Six Bells pub
- Over the next three years he underwent a culinary transformation that prepared him to
leap into New York’s Italian cuisine with his own unique signature

3. History Of Mario Batali
The Mario Batali Foundation
- The Mario Batali Foundation was established to ensure all children are well read, well fed
and well cared for. At MBF, they encourage them to dream big while providing them
with the necessary tools to become an active force for change in today’s world
Well Read
- Education is an essential building block to our children’s future, but for a variety of
reasons, many children did not receive the educational support that they need. The MBF
promotes programs that provide quality educational opportunities for children, as well as
ensure that children are provided with the necessary guidance and tools to successfully
transition into young adulthood

4. Well Fed
- Low-income individuals and families often have difficulty affording or accessing nutritious
food options. By supporting nutrition education programs, the MBF helps to enable
children and their families to move towards healthier and more sustainable lifestyles.
These programs provide guidance on how to prepare and enjoy healthy meals using
affordable and available resources, and also ensure that when necessary, families have
access to emergency food organizations
Well Cared For
- All children have the right to live a healthy life, but too often there are circumstances out
of their control that inhibit this right. The MBF helps to provide funding for paediatric
disease research to improve the quality of children’s lives
History Of Mario Batali

5. Impact Of Mario’s Philanthropy
The Lunchbox Fund
- Fostering education via nutrition, The Lunchbox Fund is a non-profit organization
dedicated to providing a daily meal for orphaned and vulnerable school children in
township and rural areas of South Africa, a country where 65% of all children live in
poverty. Receiving food encourages these children to stay in school and obtain their
education. When a child stays in school, his or her risks of HIV infection, abuse and
unwanted pregnancies are greatly reduced
- Today, 19.6% of all children in South Africa are orphans, with approximately 1.9 Million of
them orphaned as a result of HIV and AIDS. Unemployment is a severe problem where we
work, resulting in many of the students at partner schools not having access to adequate
nutrition or basic health care

6. Food Bank For New York City
- Three million New Yorkers are having difficulty affording food, including children, seniors,
single mothers, and the working poor. As the only hunger-relief organization that takes a
multi-pronged, integrated approach to ending food poverty the Food Bank For New York
City is there with a solution. They work through a citywide network of soup kitchens, food
pantries, senior centers, classrooms, after-school programs and more to serve New York
City’s most vulnerable populations. One in every five New Yorkers relies on the Food Bank
for food, resources, and nutrition education to help them lead and sustain healthy
lifestyles
- Mario and his wife, Susan, have been dedicated Food Bank supporters for more than 20
years. Mario has served on the Board of Directors since 2003, and he was honoured for
his unwavering support at the Food Bank’s Annual 2004 Can-Do Awards. He and Susan
have co-chaired the Food Bank’s Can-Do Awards Dinner every year following, and have
helped to raise nearly $8 million dollars through this high-profile event
One in every five New Yorkers rely on the Food Bank for food, resources, and nutrition
education to help them lead and sustain healthy lifestyles

7. Food Bank For New York City
- By for and cook the best quality food for the lowest cost. This program is modelled on
Cookcontinually playing an active role in helping the organization forge bonds within the
hospitality and entertainment industries, Mario helps the Food Bank collaborate with a
number of influential corporate and culinary partners, providing funds, public awareness
and additional support for the organization
- He founded and chairs the Food Bank’s Culinary Council, orchestrated “Magic, Martinis
and Mario,” a dynamic event to help support the Food Bank, and partnered with Num
Pang Sandwich Shoo to help raise funds for hunger relief
- The Mario Batali Foundation partnered with the Food Bank in funding the pilot of a
Community CookShop series, which coaches participants on how to shop

8. Team Members: Howe, Qin Sheng, Yong Kai, Nathaniel
Sources
http://www.mariobatali.com/philanthropy/
www.mariobatali.com
http://www.seattleweekly.com/2002-12-25/food/a-batali-family-christmas/
https://www.magnifissance.com/mario-batalis-crafted-italian-food-experience-eataly/
https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2011/11/mario-batali-201111