BRISTOL, Va. (WJHL) — Union 41 restaurant owner Chef T presented the Boys and Girls Club of the Mountain Empire with a check worth more than $1,000 on Thursday.

The restaurant raised the money by building a “life-sized” gingerbread house that diners could pay to eat inside of in November and December.

Chef T, who competed on Fox’s “Hell’s Kitchen” twice and was runner-up on Season 14, said giving back to the community is important to her.

“Someone gave me an opportunity and it’s my mission to live my life paying it forward and being able to help wherever I can, no matter how small or great and you never know who you’re impacting,” Chef T said.

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She opened Union 41 in Bristol, Virginia, last year.

“When you come into a community, you have to insert yourself, assimilate, and become a part of it and that involves making an impact and making an impact is definitely giving back,” she said. “You’re asking people to come into your restaurant and spend their money and you have to reciprocate.”

Christine Foote, director of programs and community engagements for the Mountain Empire Boys and Girls Club, said Chef T has become part of the family and someone the kids can look up to.

“I told some of the children, like, this can be some of your future,” Foote said. “You’re looking at a person that has made her way, using her hands and you could do that as well.”

While at the Boys and Girls Club, Chef T engaged with the kids and even did the Cupid Shuffle.

“When you see these kids and what even a dollar amount can do for them after school, whether it’s providing food or providing sports equipment, you know, like one of these kids, several of these kids, could grow up to be so many awesome things,” Chef T said.

Union 41 is located at 171 Piedmont Avenue in Bristol, Virginia.

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