A cooking demonstration on Saturday afternoon not only gave attendees a taste of new foods, but also gave them a taste of the different talents other community members have to offer.

Seonmi Kim, the executive director of Champaign-Urbana’s local currency UC Smiles, said she got the idea for the demonstration when she tasted a friend’s Indian cuisine.

“(Kim) has come to my house for dinner and enjoyed my cooking,” said Shyamala Balgopal, a University librarian who demonstrated how to make three different Indian dishes at Saturday’s event.

Balgopal said she has cooked only at home before, and this event was her first time giving a demonstration.

Kim said the main goal of UC Smile events, such as this cooking demonstration, is to gather community members and to have fun.

“Many people want to learn new and more diverse things,” Kim said. “We have many people in this community who can provide lectures and things like this cooking class, so what we need to do is provide a bridge so we can connect people.”

Admission to the demonstration cost 10 Smiles. The Smiles are a local currency that can only be used at several Champaign-Urbana businesses. The Smiles are part of a pilot project and can be purchased at International Galleries and Strawberry Fields, both in Urbana, and Cheese & Crackers in Champaign. The currency is backed by U.S. currency, dollar for dollar, but some stores offer discounts to customers using Smiles.

Kim started the Smiles movement in November 2012 after receiving two grants from the University. Since then, she said Smiles have reached a circulation of about 25,000. The currency is accepted in 75 stores in the Champaign-Urbana area.

Sam Rodriguez, senior in sociology, was willing to pay admission to the cooking demonstration for a couple of reasons. Rodriguez said he has learned a lot by attending events outside of classes.

“Teachers have a lot more to offer than just lecture content,” Rodriguez said. “And I want to learn how to cook something because my regime is pretty monotonous in the kitchen.” 

Rodriguez said he enjoys learning about the local currency movement because he wants to change the fundamental attitude about the American economy.

Kim and Tracy Satterthwaite, executive director of public relations for UC Smiles, took trips to Washington, D.C., and Baltimore, to study local currency movements in those cities. 

In Washington, D.C., the movement has been unsuccessful because the city is too large for a local currency to be implemented, Kim said. But Baltimore’s local currency, the BNote, has been successful because the leaders of the city’s local currency movement hold weekly meetings with community members to foster a closer sense of community. 

With the help of a volunteer who has professional video editing experience, Kim and Satterthwaite will use the knowledge gained from these trips to make a documentary about local currency movements. The documentary will be completed when evaluation of the UC Smiles pilot project is finished. 

“We are interviewing business owners and doing surveys to evaluate the pilot project,” Kim said.

After evaluation, Kim’s next step will be to find a new executive director for the UC Smiles movement. Kim accepted a position as an assistant professor of social work at Ramapo College of New Jersey. Kim’s work as an assistant professor will start next year, and until then, she will continue searching for a new executive director. 

“We have a great group of volunteers; now we just have to find someone to coordinate them,” Kim said.

Janelle can be reached at [email protected].