Corporate Partner Spotlight: ZESCO

ZESCO, one of our corporate partners, has been providing local restaurants with equipment and supplies since 1973. The Patachou Foundation is proud to have ZESCO as a generous supporter, providing utensils, cookware, education supplies as well as kitchen supplies for The Patachou Foundation prep kitchen and our Food Explorers Club.The ZESCO team makes everyone who walks through their doors feel like part of the family. Maybe that's because many of the ZESCO employees are related to each other. Founded by twin brothers, Clark and Mark Zoll, along with their father Nathan, ZESCO has since seen a number of Zoll family members join the business including Clark’s daughter Annie, a sales specialist.We had a chance to chat with Annie Zoll of ZESCO on why food matters and what’s on the menu at Zoll family gatherings.How did ZESCO’s relationship with Patachou begin?Six or seven years ago I met Martha Hoover at a Contemporary Arts Society Event at the Indianapolis Museum of Art. I told her she was my hero and called her every day for six months until she was ready to become a customer.How does ZESCO support TPF?ZESCO is a corporate liaison for The Patachou Foundation, so we provide flatware and serving utensils like tongs and ladles. We’ve also donated equipment to the TPF kitchen.What about TPF's mission inspires you?It’s incredibly important to us at ZESCO to give back to our community. Food insecurity among children is a big problem here in Indianapolis and Marion County and we wanted to help Martha Hoover and TPF bring a solution to fruition. We are very grateful for our relationship with Patachou and we like to get behind our customers.What has been the coolest part of your experience supporting TPF so far?Seeing how they implement farm-to-table experience for kids. From their on-staff farmer teaching them all about honeybees and how food is grown and getting their hands dirty in the soil. Also learning about nutrition, basic cooking skills, and table manners —these are all important life lessons.Beyond keeping bellies full, why does food matter? Cooking is the heart and soul of life and family. Breaking bread is what connects people and it can also be utilized as a tool to encourage children to better themselves, be it with what they’re ingesting or their outlook on life.You come from a family that loves to cook. What’s on your dinner table?It all stems from grandparents, from my grandmother’s chicken matzo ball soup that my mom put her own spin on to my other grandmother’s stuffed peppers—that red sauce is where it’s at. Also, spanakopita and my mother’s spaghetti sauce. Oh, and our family loves Joe’s Stone Crab—we’ll fly those in on special occasions.