The Strangest Part Of Marc Murphy's Work With World Central Kitchen In Poland - Exclusive
About three weeks ago, Marc Murphy had a conversation with his "Chopped" team. "I had to let people know that I wasn't going to be doing TV shows [like] before, that I had to cancel everything," Murphy shared with Mashed in an exclusive interview. The celebrity chef says that everyone understood. Because, since then, he has been based out of Poland, volunteering with World Central Kitchen to prepare thousands of meals a day for refugees of the Russia-Ukraine war. "They understand the world the way it is, and people need help, and I wanted to help," he added.
At the time Mashed talked to Murphy, he was staying at an Airbnb about an hour away from World Central Kitchen's main HQ in the region. "If I stay much longer, I'm going to definitely try to look for a place a little closer," Murphy said. He's shared that he cleared his schedule and will stay for as long as he can and as long as the organization needs him. "I got here in the beginning and there was a lot of, 'Yes,'" Murphy recounted. "And then, some of the volunteers have to go back to their jobs."
Even as some volunteers pack up their bags, the situation remains precarious. In mid-March, it was reported that the Russian army dropped a series of bombs just 15 miles away from the Polish border, and more and more people cross the border into the country each day. Between February 4 and April 3, 2022, The UNHCR reports that over 4 million refugees have fled the country. The vast majority of them cross into Poland and, with any luck, might be welcomed with a stew or a sandwich prepared by World Central Kitchen.
What Marc Murphy brings to his World Central Kitchen work every day
War makes for a harrowing work environment, as Marc Murphy shared firsthand. He told Mashed he wakes up at 5:30 in the morning to get ready to report to World Central Kitchen, but he's not just grabbing the keys to his rental car and going. His morning packing routine is, undoubtedly, one of the strangest things about his job in Poland at the moment.
"I don't bring everything with me, but I bring everything that I need with me so that I could actually just leave if I had to. I have my clothes and stuff here, in the Airbnb, but we don't know the situation, we don't know if things could go certain ways," Murphy said. The chef added he packs a backpack with extra clothes and energy bars "in case we all have to head out and not be able to come back here." If it seems surreal to you, it does to Murphy, too. "That is a little strange, to leave a place where you're sleeping and staying and being like, "Well, I have everything with me. I don't have to come back if I have to," Murphy reflected.
To support Marc Murphy and World Central Kitchen, head to the chef's Instagram page to donate to his fundraiser. You can also help support by setting up your own fundraiser via Facebook or Instagram. It's a powerful tool and an easy way to encourage friends and family to donate to organizations that are on the ground providing necessary resources. To date, people have raised more than $50 million for the people of Ukraine using Meta's apps for relief efforts.