Chason Forehand has spent 45 years in the culinary industry—but his story goes far beyond the kitchen.
After experiencing abuse as a child, Chason turned to drugs at an early age while trying to cope with rage, fear, depression, and shame. His addiction followed him into the restaurant industry, where he was often able to perform even when his life outside of work was falling apart.
Then one chef changed the direction of his life.
After disappearing on a three-day bender and missing the busiest shifts of the week, Chason returned to work expecting to be fired. Instead, his chef revealed that he was 10 years clean and sober himself—and that someone had once given him a second chance. He decided to pay that same gift forward to Chason, becoming his mentor and first sponsor and helping him begin his own recovery journey.
That experience would eventually influence the philosophy behind Transformation Kitchen, a program created to offer people more than culinary training. Participants develop job skills, life skills, financial literacy, conflict-resolution skills, community connections, work experience, and a pathway toward living-wage employment.
But bringing Transformation Kitchen to the United States hasn't been easy.
After coming incredibly close to opening a U.S. location, a lease fell through just before it was supposed to be signed. Chason describes the disappointment as devastating—and shares why, after 30 years in recovery, he found himself returning to NA meetings because he knew he needed to protect what he had built in his own life.
In this episode of Recovery Matters, CCAR Executive Director Stacy Charpentier talks with Chason about addiction, long-term recovery, second chances, Transformation Kitchen, the danger of attaching our identity to outcomes, and why the work of recovery never truly stops.
They also discuss what Chason learned from having a door close, why strong support systems still matter decades into recovery, and why he continues to believe that Transformation Kitchen will find its first home in the United States.
00:00 Meet Chason Forehand
02:36 Chason's Recovery Journey
05:53 Addiction, a Bender & a Second Chance
07:48 The Idea Behind Transformation Kitchen
11:33 What Happens When You Put People First
14:19 How Transformation Kitchen Works
15:25 Bringing Transformation Kitchen Around the World
17:22 Why Hasn't It Happened in the U.S.?
19:55 When the Dream Fell Apart
20:19 Protecting 30 Years of Recovery
22:18 Lessons From the Setback
24:30 When Recovery Work Becomes Your Identity
26:17 "Your Addictions Will Just Morph"
27:42 What Transformation Kitchen Needs Next
30:29 What Transformation Means to Chason
31:14 What to Do When a Door Closes
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