As certain states begin to partially reopen their economies amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, more people are showing their appreciation for the heroism of frontlines workers.
The David Lynch Foundation's “Heal the Healers Now” initiative to provide free training in the stress-reducing Transcendental Meditation technique to medical professionals continues to garner nationwide support, with many celebrities signing on board to bolster the organization’s efforts. The latest supporter of the national initiative is best-selling author and food expert Padma Lakshmi, who today launched a virtual fundraising campaign that allows one lucky winner and a guest to see how she prepares a great meal. The campaign launched on leading cause-driven auction site Charitybuzz, and bidding on the prize will be available through June 10.
“I’m excited to give back to the David Lynch Foundation, an entity that has brought much calm and serenity to so many,” said Padma Lakshmi.
Emmy-nominated chef Padma Lakshmi is internationally known as a food expert, model, actress and best-selling author, as well as the recipient of the 2016 NECO Ellis Island Medal of Honor and Variety’s 2018 Karma award. Lakshmi serves as host and an executive producer of Bravo’s Emmy award-winning Top Chef and Host/Creator of Taste the Nation, premiering on Hulu June 19.
Lakshmi established herself as a food expert early in her career, having hosted two successful cooking shows and writing the best-selling Easy Exotic, which won the “Best First Book” award at the 1999 Gourmand World Cookbook Awards. Lakshmi followed this success with the publication of her second cookbook, Tangy, Tart, Hot & Sweet. In 2016, she released her food memoir, The New York Times best-selling Love, Loss and What We Ate, which also won “Best Lifestyle, Body & Soul” at the 2017 Gourmand World Cookbook Awards, followed by The Encyclopedia of Spices & Herbs.
Lakshmi’s Charitybuzz campaign will offer fans an opportunity to bid on a shared Zoom cooking session, which can be shared with one guest and involves a step-by-step showing of how Lakshmi prepares the perfect meal. The winner of the virtual cooking lesson will have a year’s time to schedule a Zoom call with the celebrity chef. Anyone can bid at Charitybuzz.com/Padma.
“We are so grateful to Padma for sharing our commitment to providing TM as a tool for self-care to the many medical professionals working around to clock to save lives,” said Bob Roth, CEO of the David Lynch Foundation. “They need meditation now more than ever, and thanks to donations from across the world, and extremely talented celebrities like Padma who generously give their time, we’ll be able to bring TM training to many thousands of people on the frontlines,”
Transcendental Meditation is an easy-to-learn, enjoyable-to-practice mental technique for deep relaxation and stress reduction that has been successfully offered in medical schools, academic and VA medical centers, hospitals, military academies, substance abuse centers, prisons and other settings, according to the TM.org website.
Instruction in the TM technique for healthcare providers includes eight hours of specialized training by a trauma-informed teacher, which includes one class of personalized instruction, as well as a comprehensive, one-year follow-up program to ensure the provider is gaining maximum results. The technique is practiced for 15-20 minutes twice a day. Training for healthcare professionals battling COVID-19 will begin once health authorities give the greenlight for teaching medical workers onsite, and the David Lynch Foundation will announce the first wave of participating hospitals in the coming weeks.
