Meet Our Instructors
Our enthusiastic team of instructors shares our philosophy and mission, based on a quote from the immortal Julia Child — to learn how to cook, try new recipes, learn from your mistakes, BE FEARLESS, and above all have fun!
Each instructor brings a unique blend of skills, experience, and a deep commitment to inspiring joy in the kitchen. We invite you to join them on a delicious journey of discovery, as they strive to awaken the master chef in everyone.
Helen Chudakova-Sanya
Helen, Zest’s Culinary Director since 2023, is a proud mother of four and a Ukrainian immigrant with an enduring passion for cooking. She spent much of her life in Ukraine, initially studying and later teaching English. Helen’s culinary journey began with her grandmother, who instilled a love for cooking in her from a young age through patient hours spent in the kitchen together.
After relocating to the U.S, Helen honed her skills in the kitchens of Brooklyn, NY working for farm-to-table restaurants, culinary schools, and high-volume catering companies. She recently made the move to Lancaster County for a more tranquil, family-friendly lifestyle.
Helen’s interests extend beyond the kitchen to include plant medicine, as she is a certified herbalist. In her leisure time, she enjoys spending time with her family, farming, hiking, indulging in British historical fiction series, and renovating her historical home in Strasburg, PA. Helen’s dedication to good food and a good life continues to inspire her work and her students.
Hannah Smith
Chef Hannah is a Pennsylvania farm country native. She received both her Culinary Arts degree as well as her Baking & Pastry Arts degree from Pennsylvania College of Technology, Penn State University. Her love for traveling is second only to her love for all things cooking, and she has lived and worked worldwide, including Switzerland and most recently Japan. She loves to inspire confidence in others through cooking, and when not in the kitchen, she enjoys running, riding her horse Rango, and keeps busy running her bed and breakfast, the Inn on Church Road, in Hershey. Be sure to look for her Japanese cooking class, Knife Skills 101, Gluten Free Baking, Brunch, and more!
Linda Leeking
A resident of our own neighborhood Lititz, Chef Linda has enjoyed being part of the Zest instructor team since the beginning! She is a retired Culinary Arts Teacher with 24 years’ experience at both college and high school levels. During those years she taught introductory and advanced cooking skills, including regional and international cuisines. In addition to being a teacher, Linda was a District Foods Manager for Canteen Corporation that included the title of a Food and Beverage Manager for Yellowstone National Park. Linda is loved by her family, coworkers, and students alike! So be sure to check out all her International Classes!
Gwen Eberly
Our resident art extraordinaire, Gwen has been creating things in the kitchen since she was just twelve years old. For the past 28 years she has been teaching elementary and middle school art. Earlier in her career she catered private events and her talents shine brightest when working with our kid chefs here at the school. She enjoys cooking with seasonal and local ingredients, especially those from her own garden. Gwen has 2 college age kids who she enjoys visiting and lives with her husband and sweet goldendoodle, George, in historic Marietta, along the Susquehanna river. When she is not teaching kids, she enjoys biking, running, and traveling with her family. Check out her Kids Cooking Club as well as her fantastic Kids Summer Camps!
Cat Alwine
Cat Alwine is a familiar face to many Zest! regulars. After serving as an assistant at the Cooking School since July 2020, she is now a Chef Instructor.
For Cat, the magic of cooking is in the connections that can develop over food. She has been interested in food since she was very young, and her interest has only grown over her lifetime, inspired by her travels and other culinary experiences. “I want to teach people to experience culture through food and have that small connection with others,” Cat shares. “I became interested in the art of cooking in my mid-to-late twenties because of traveling to Japan, Germany, and Bulgaria. Join Cat in her Southeast Asian, Hawaiian, and Japanese Cooking Classes!
Stephanie Willette
Originally from Connecticut, Stephanie Willette discovered her passion for pastry at a young age. After attending culinary school in her home state, she relocated to Pennsylvania to pursue both her career and personal life. At just 20, she joined Bistro Barberet and Bakery, where her enthusiasm for pastry drove her to continuously grow and refine her skills. Over the years, Stephanie’s dedication and commitment to her craft have shaped her into the accomplished Pastry Chef she is today.
Joe Hall
Joe Hall is a 2015 graduate of the Nemacolin Resort Culinary Apprenticeship Program. Following his time at Nemacolin, Joe further refined his culinary skills at the prestigious 5-star Sea Island Resort in southern Georgia, where he began developing his signature style—combining classic dishes with a fresh and health-conscious twist. In 2017, Joe returned to central Pennsylvania to be closer to family, and he currently oversees garde manger banquets at the Hershey Lodge. Outside of his professional role, Joe enjoys catering private dinner events and spending quality time with his wife and son.
Mike Wetherhold
Mike, a Lancaster County native, was first introduced to Zest! Cooking School through various classes he attended with his wife. After a career transition, he joined Zest! as a culinary assistant, a role he continues to enjoy. When the opportunity arose to instruct Sourdough classes, Mike eagerly accepted, having first learned the craft from a class at Zest! years prior. Outside of baking, Mike is a group fitness instructor at the Lititz Rec Center and enjoys backpacking in his free time. He encourages anyone hesitant about sourdough, saying, “It’s much easier than you think! If I can do it, so can you.”