The Touching Way Chef José Andrés Celebrated His Birthday

José Andrés may have blown out the candles and turned a year older on July 13th, but in true Andrés style, the Spanish-American chef found a way to turn the spotlight on others. Per the Washingtonian, he established his nonprofit World Central Kitchen in 2010 and has been paying it forward ever since, rushing to the frontlines of world disasters to feed those in need with hot, nourishing meals. Time Magazine dubbed the celebrity chef "the face of global disaster relief" and his work is definitely giving credence to that title. 

From feeding those in Puerto Rico made homeless and displaced by Hurricane Maria to cooking up meals for the most vulnerable during the COVID-19 pandemic, to World Central Kitchen's meals for Ukraine, the activist has established himself as a true leader. His philanthropy has earned the admiration and respect of his peers, the Smithsonian gave Andrés a huge honor for his humanitarian work, and he has been at the center of plenty of media praise. However, on his birthday the chef took to social media to share his day with his own personal heroes and to remind his followers that the work of World Central Kitchen for the people of Ukraine is ongoing.  

José Andrés posted a video on Twitter of his World Central Kitchen staff playing instruments and singing the iconic "Happy Birthday to You" to fete and honor their fearless founder. The chef acknowledged it was indeed his day but then flipped the script. He wrote, "Ok! today is my birthday, and I'm sharing one of the many videos that our team members of @WCKitchen sent me this morning ... but really I want this to serve as an homage to all the women and men #UkraineFoodFighters risking their lives to feed fellow citizens in need." The Twitterverse responded with excitement.

Many chimed into the social media conversation to wish the chef a happy day, including Padma Lakshmi's birthday tribute to Andrés. Another member of the platform summed up all of our feelings by tweeting, "May your biggest and best birthday wishes come true! You certainly deserve that." According to the World Central Kitchen website, staff members have served over 25 million meals to people in Ukraine in more than 230 cities and towns.