Cooking for Community: Luke’s Story
My name’s Luke Robinson. I was born in ’95. Growing up, life was rough. My dad was a meth dealer, a racist, and he worshipped the devil. My mum was always on pills. She’d gaslight the house, lock us inside, and feed us toast squashed between plastic. But weirdly, there were good memories too like when she took us to BMX races. We even placed at the world championships. We were fed, we were loved… just not in the way a kid should be.
That chaos followed me into adulthood. I ended up in prison for a few years. The first two years were hell. But even in there, I tried to turn things around. I cooked for the officers, played rugby, and taught myself how to paint. I wore my prison ID everywhere, but I also kept a photo of my step mum, the one person who visited and topped up my account so I could buy chocolate.
Then, everything came crashing down. I lost my three kids to the government. My wife disappeared. I got hit by a car, broke my foot, split my head open, lost my license, went bankrupt, and had to give away my dogs. I felt like nothing was left. I remember thinking, “God had to kill me so I could live.” Depression hit hard. I was yelling for hours every day. I thought I was crazy, but really, I was just lost.
Not long ago, I started attending these community cooking sessions. At first, I wasn’t expecting anything. But I remember one day, we were racing little toy cars around the track like it was Mario Kart and just laughing and being kids again. Then we were back in the kitchen, learning how to hold knives, prep food, cook together. Simple stuff, but it meant everything. It made me feel like a human. It made me feel better about myself.
Before that, I had no confidence left. I wasn’t used to connecting with people from different cultures. But now I’ve got mates from everywhere. One of the chefs even told me, “You’ve got talent! I’d hire you straight away.” That stuck with me.
I’ve been rebuilding. I’ve got my white card, I’m studying for my security cert, and I volunteer with Global Mission United to feed the homeless. Church, men’s meetings, Bible study, it all helps. I tell people, “Everything I’ve experienced, I’m doing the opposite for my kids.” That’s what keeps me going.
These sessions saved me. They gave me a reason to show up. And if I can be saved, anyone can.
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