Spinach dip, jambalaya and basketball working together to give back to a community in need.

While food has a way of satisfying a hungry appetite, it also has a way of bringing people together. Lauren Mioton, a 5-foot-9 junior guard on the Purdue women’s basketball team used this secondary power of food to give back to her hometown.

“I wanted to do a fundraiser after spending some time in New Orleans,” said Mioton. “Normally with basketball we don’t get that much time off and it is recommended that we stay on campus during the summers to take summer courses. Last summer I was able to go home for the summer and since I couldn’t take an Organic Chemistry class at Purdue because it didn’t fit into the right time frame with basketball, I was able to go home and take it at  

“It was the first long segment of time I had with my family and be able to look around at the devastation that was there. I had seen what had happened to my city two months after Katrina had hit, but to come back two years later and see the area still in ruins, I felt like I needed to do something to help out. I started thinking about what would be the best way to benefit no only New Orleans, but also the surrounding areas.”

With a goal in sight, Mioton just needed a little assistance to get her moving in the right direction.

“I came back to school and was talking with one of the basketball administrators, Terry Kix, and she mentioned that while she was at Maine, she did a few cookbooks to help Katrina victims,” said Mioton. “As soon as she mentioned cookbooks, I knew it was perfect. I had thought about t-shirts and bumper stickers, but a cookbook was perfect as New Orleans is always based about food, culture and the lively energy, so I knew this would be a good fundraiser.”

“I’m so passionate about the fundraising going to wetland preservation as I thought that would be the most beneficial for New Orleans and the communities around it. The wetlands are the primary natural barrier between any incoming storms and potential damage on land. I want people to be able to enjoy New Orleans for generations to come and not something that is talked about as being in the past.”

The cookbook fundraiser – which benefited the Lake Pontcharian Basin Foundation – helped Mioton fulfill her desire to give back and also brought in support from near and far.

“It was amazing how many communities were involved,” said Mioton. “There was one community that is 900 miles away that contributed and there were people in California and Kentucky who were submitting recipes.”

The great thing is that people sent in recipes, but they also sent in stories so I got to read why these recipes meant so much or why they serve them every year at holidays. It was interesting to realize how much food brings us together. I also had some of my teammates and coaches also submit recipes.  I think that we even had (Purdue Alumni and Saints’ Quarterback) Drew Brees and his wife submit a recipe, which was great. You think that someone like him who is so busy and has people tugging at him in several ways to spend the time to type up a recipe for a small fundraiser was amazing. It gives me chills to talk about this because it’s scary to see this thought I had back in August come to life and do so well. I’m very proud of it and excited about it.”

The excitement over Mioton’s 250 recipe cookbook – Live to Eat -- spread faster than butter on a hot biscuit thanks to the efforts of those around her.

“The reason it got off the ground is because the BOILERmaker NETwork took care of production costs, so without them funding out, I probably wouldn’t have left the ground with this fundraising,” said Mioton. “They helped me with the initial funding and then it went off from there.”

“It went off from there as we finished production and the books then came in January. From there the fan network sent out flyers and put them on the website to advertise as well as sold them at the games. People went above and beyond what they need to help me out.”