Lee Association of Remarkable Citizens broke ground on its state-of-the-art commercial culinary training kitchen Feb. 13 at its main campus at 2570 Hanston St. in Fort Myers. Despite facing fundraising setbacks amidst the challenges of the global pandemic, LARC received a significant boost with a $650,000 state appropriation. This training kitchen will provide a space where staff will deliver training designed for the hospitality industry. It will be a focus in LARC’s Learn, Achieve, Become Program, which launched in 2019. Through LAB, individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities are nurtured in a learning environment tailored to their unique abilities, encompassing vocational training, independent living skills and holistic personal development. Five Labs include Lab for Living, Wellness Lab, Smart Living Technology Lab, Vocational Exploration Lab and Collaboration Lab.