Meet Ricky Dixion

By Common Threads | July 13, 2019

Common Threads Miami Program Alum Now Proud Volunteer

Ricky Dixon is a 15-year-old freshman at Miami Central Senior High School, who shares a unique passion for cooking and serving his community.

Five years ago, Ricky was enrolled in chef instructor Mimi Chacin’s Common Threads Cooking Skills & World Cuisine course as a fourth grader at Carrie P. Meek Westview K-8 Center. Cooking Skills & World Cuisine is Common Threads’ after-school program that engages the tastes and minds of students while exploring the culture and cuisine of different countries. It was in this class that Ricky found his love for cooking and his passion for serving.

The experience from Cooking Skills & World Cuisine made such an inspiration on Ricky that he stepped up to be a volunteer for the program when he entered high school.

“Chef Mimi taught us cooking techniques, such as using the bear claw when mincing, and different tricks and tips in the kitchen,” Ricky said. “I also learned interesting fun facts about healthy foods from different countries around the world.”

Ricky also greatly credits his fourth grade teacher, Teresa Waters-Cain, who shared her special gift and love for teaching and gardening in conjunction with the Common Threads program.

“I love the Common Threads program because of the experience it provides for my kids,” Ms. Waters-Cain said. “Common Threads exposes them to new words, worlds and places. It is a program they will never forget and lessons they will never regret”.

Ricky feels that learning never stops, and even though he is no longer in the program, through volunteering he is still able to learn new things while helping others. Having been a volunteer for a year, Ricky mentioned that some of his favorite parts of volunteering is being able to interact with the students, helping them to learn every lesson he learned and how to best channel their creative energy in the kitchen. Today, Ricky has big plans of attending college and culinary school and dreams of returning to his community here in Miami upon graduation. Thanks to the Cooking Skills & World Cuisine program, Ricky wants to become a local chef and owner of a homeless shelter, serving those who cannot serve themselves.

“I want to help my community and give homeless people a place where they feel they can belong and call home.” Ricky said. “I believe I can achieve my dream through cooking because cooking brings people together, and with cooking I can give people a place to stay and a plate to eat”.

1 Comment

Ricky Dixon on August 22, 2023 at 5:37 pm
I love the article and I am currently an school security at my old school I love it here my name is Ricky Dixon and I’m so honored to have this article written about me and I still currently volunteer for common threads. Ms. Waters-Cain still is the best teacher I had in all my years of school and it feels good to work at the school I attended from K-8.

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