Many of the available healthy foods and food preparation are targeted at upper socioeconomic levels, while people of lower socioeconomic levels become more at risk for obesity and obesity-related problems. Through cooking classes and demonstrations, The Dinner Table allows individuals to learn fun and inexpensive alternatives for a nutritious lifestyle. I've created a cooking class for people in homeless and women's shelters in the Midwest. I teach cooking skills and recipes to people living with limited economic resources and food stamps.

An activity that has great importance to me is promoting cultural awareness and friendship on my high school campus. For this purpose I established a Slavic Club, which provides my schoolmates with the opportunity to expand their knowledge about different cultures beyond the classrooms experience. Likewise, it teaches young people to be open-minded and more tolerant to the world around us. The inspiration to create a Slavic Club was born when I learned how little my schoolmates knew about my native country, Russia, and how eager they were to learn more about its language and life.