Guest Editorial: What the School Renovation Means to Farm to Cafeteria

— by Madie Murray, F2C Coordinator–

I guess it would be more appropriate to say what it means to me! The amazing transformation of the entire public school campus is, by itself, awe-inspiring. But for me, what has occurred in the school cafeteria, old home ec and old science rooms makes my heart literally sing.

I can’t wait for the first Celebrity Chef Lunch in October when Charles Dalton of The Kitchen (who was our very first Celebrity Chef five years ago) returns again to try to break his all-time record of 425 lunches served to students, staff and community.

I can’t wait until, after a two-year respite, we will resume the Student Chef Competition in the new Culinary Arts room that previously was the old middle school science room.

I can’t wait to have our next “Fifth Season” Event on September 12 in the new cafeteria kitchen when we will actually have ample prep and freezer space to store a multitude of fresh veggies, herbs and fruits from our Island Farms for use in school meals during the Fall and Winter months. (Email gomadie@gmail.com if you want to help!)

I can’t wait until Zach Holley, our school chef who recently completed his CTE Certification, leads his first Chef Intern Class and utilizes the “teaching side” of the spacious and functional new cafeteria kitchen that now occupies the entire space of the old Home Ec room.

I can’t wait for our new F2C Coordinator, Ashley Randall, to soon come on board to take over the reigns of the program and infuse her fresh energy and ideas that will take it to new heights.

If three people, however, could be rewarded adequately for enduring not only the cramped, old, dank spaces of the previous cafeteria kitchen for untold years, then mobilizing scratch-cooked school breakfasts and lunches for a whole school year from Camp Orkila to the old gym stage during reconstruction, it would be the three people affected most by the cafeteria transformation: Debbie Guilford, Zach Holley and Bing Mowrey. In my eyes, these three remarkable individuals performed miracles under the worst of circumstances, and literally smiled though it all. Seeing the delight on their faces when they started making meals in the new cafeteria spaces gave so much truth to the words: They earned it. They really, really earned it!