Remarkable Woman: Ellen Luckey is teaching life skills one meal at a time

Apr 2, 2026 - 01:25

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Remarkable Woman: Ellen Luckey is teaching life skills one meal at a time

RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) — Who said lessons are only taught in the classroom? 8News' Remarkable Woman Ellen Luckey is getting Central Virginia students out from behind their desks and into the kitchen to learn valuable life skills.

Luckey knows her way around the kitchen. From pastries to signature dishes, Luckey enjoys the challenge and excitement that cooking brings. That excitement started at an early age, when her family welcomed her into the kitchen as they prepared meals for the family.

Throughout her life, her passion for cooking grew -- but her plan for life wasn't to become a chef. Instead, Luckey studied at Virginia Commonwealth University with the hopes of one day becoming a lawyer.

After graduating, Luckey knew her passion was with cooking. She then made plans to combine her love for the kitchen with her desire to invest in the next generation by opening her own cooking school for kids.

In December 2016, with just $100 and the support from her family, Luckey sought to make that dream a reality.

Remarkable Women 2026 finalist Ellen Luckey alongside her family. (Photo: Ellen Luckey)

Remarkable Women 2026 finalist Ellen Luckey. (Photo: Ellen Luckey)

“With that $100, I packed up our children in our minivan, and we went from Goodwill to Goodwill, and I purchased two toaster ovens,” Luckey told 8News.

From there, she opened Victoria's Kitchen Kids Cooking School, offering classes to students in Richmond, Henrico County and Chesterfield County, as well as their families.

Luckey told 8News her school has served more than 15,000 students.

While students are learning to cook a variety of meals, she likes to say: “We're more than just a cooking school -- We're community.”

8News visited Victoria's Kitchen, watching as Luckey taught students from the Peter Paul Development Center -- a community organization in Richmond's East End that offers after-school activities. On the menu was chicken alfredo with a homemade sauce.

Remarkable Women 2026 finalist Ellen Luckey teaching in her cooking school, Victoria's Kitchen. (Photo: 8News)

This recipe, like the many others Luckey offers, creates a unique opportunity for students to apply their academic learning and develop real-life skills.

“Some people are saying, 'All you're doing is cooking,'" Luckey said. "No, we're teaching love. We're teaching academics such as reading, writing, math -- all through cooking."

For the past 10 years, Luckey said she crafted her courses to incorporate Virginia Standards of Learning (SOL) requirements. These academic skills are applied when students read recipes, add measurements and learn the history of the ingredients they are using.

“When you go on to college or trade school, if you know how to cook and prepare your meals, you're going to be well off as a wholesome person," Luckey said.

Luckey understands mistakes can be made in the kitchen. In fact, she welcomes them and hopes that students will use each mistake as a learning opportunity. She hopes the same is applied in life.

As her cooking school approaches 10 years in business, Luckey hopes that every student who completes a class and goes on in life remembers how capable they are.

“They can do it," she said. "No matter how much they may have a little doubt pushing inside of them, they can push up enough strength, gather that strength enough to push that doubt aside."

That is why Luckey always tells her students: "If you never give it a try, you'll never know if you would succeed.”

8News is celebrating remarkable women from Central Virginia throughout March. You can watch full interviews with this year’s finalists and winner here.