3rd Grade General Education Teacher in Chicago, IL
Thomas J. Waters Elementary
2024-25 Fellow: Lia Berezka Zuniga has been teaching for 10 years. She is a Chicago Public Schools product and Chicago native. She started her career in South Korean public schools, taught in Little Village, and now is a proud 3rd grade teacher at Thomas J. Waters where she also serves on the Instructional lead team. She was inspired to join the Pilot Light Fellowship to build cultural connections through food. Ms. Berezka is passionate about building a community for her diverse classroom-and cooking with them! She is no stranger to food and the service industry, being a former employee of Lula Cafe and Le Bouchon. In her spare time, she also runs a small business, Tiny Opal Vintage.
Favorite Food Education Standard: FES #1: Food connects us to each other.
1. Food connects us to each other. – Teaching in a city like Chicago we have so many unique opportunities to highlight what people are cooking and eating right at home. Having an immigrant family and my dad being a refugee, I know that food is not only sustenance but a symbol of home, people, memories, and places. It also builds opportunities to tear down walls that words may never be able to.
A Favorite Food Memory or Recipe:
I’ll always remember my Lolo taking me to Viet Hoa every Saturday as a child. Filipinos didn’t have many grocery stores in Chicago back then, so we shared community with “Little Vietnam.” We would park in the small, overcrowded lot, and the owners of the store ALWAYS greeted my Lolo. He would bolt to the seafood section, carefully assessing the fish (with heads on!) blue crabs, snails. I remember he would pick up a crab, no matter what, and judge it upon pick up. “FAT! We will get a big bag..” or “Skinny…not worth it!” He would then let me peruse the treats; rainbow rice cakes, Haw Flakes, dried mango, White Rabbit candy, different colored jellos in tiny cups. I’ll never forget those trips.
What I’m Most Excited About as a New Fellow:
I am most excited to bring student centered food experiences and lessons to students to build our community. I know Pilot Light lessons can be shared beyond our students and into their homes and community – love to see us all share this beautiful resource.
