Sicile wanted to become a vegetarian in second grade when she realized chicken was a “a chicken.” Not being in a vegetarian family, she eventually became vegetarian around sixth grade on her own, and now has been vegan about four years.

Sicile said, “I have worked to bring veganism to the world around me, through both community service and my curricular commitments at school.” In Brooklyn she volunteered at Community Solidarity, which distributes vegetarian produce and vegetarian meals to those in need. For her senior school project, she examined the accessibility of veganism for those with limited economic means. She compiled a cookbook with meals and servings sizes for families on a fully SNAP budget, so that individuals limited to EBT funds for food (food stamps) could afford these recipes. She said, “I made sure that all of my recipes were relatively easy and didn’t require large time commitments, whether it be for the cooking itself or just for the finding/purchasing of ingredients. Lastly, I also made sure to develop meals that are nutritious and have many of the nutrients that can go lacking in the diets of first-time vegans, such as iron and calcium.” You can see the beautifully illustrated recipes at https://docs.google.com/document/d/1V8p5S5c7WFH27GhGnCko39UiNWLqie1T/edit Sicile did the cooking and photography herself.

In college, Sicile plans to study the intersection of political science and ethics, which includes food justice, and the way we can achieve it for everyone. She will be attending Princeton.

For information on other scholarship winners and applying for the next Vegetarian Resource Group college scholarship contest, see https://www.vrg.org/student/scholar.htm

Deadline is February 20th of each year.

To support additional VRG scholarships and internships, donate at vrg.org/donate, call (410) 366-8343, or mail contribution to The Vegetarian Resource Group, P.O. Box 1463, Baltimore, MD 21203.