By Dierdree Glassford

This past week two students in the SMCC Culinary Arts program were given a learning opportunity that was one for the books. For the past year or so the McKernan center has teamed up with WEX. Inc to offer a community meal for the local Redbank neighborhood in South Portland. WEX. Inc. offers a community meal to everyone in the multicultural Redbank community, all are welcome to come, free of charge, to enjoy a delicious home cooked meal.

Jill Hannaford, head Chef and mentor to many at the McKernan center offers her students many opportunities to reach their highest potential, both in their culinary fields and in life. Wanting more for her kitchen family, she is always inventive, offering many ways for her staff to learn with eye-opening experiences that make them feel fulfilled and inspired.

This WEX. Dinner was no different. Students and staff Derek Haley and Dierdree Glassford were in for a treat when they were given the chance to see what all of their hours of prep and commitment actually meant for the community of Redbank. From toddlers to the elderly, and everyone in between, the entire community is invited once a month to have a meal as a whole.

On the most recent menu, was BBQ chicken, a fresh variety of salads including mixed bean, potato, and fresh greens, and to top it all off a nice comforting peach cobbler. Every month the meal changes but the joy and sense of community does not. The WEX. Volunteers serve the patrons, and all of the food that has not been consumed at the event can be packed up in to-go boxes to bring home for later, or are brought to local homeless shelters. Every single bit is given away to fill stomachs, and to lighten hearts, not a bite is wasted.

Through this wonderful connection and partnership, WEX. Inc. has created a $5,000 fund that allows students to attend SMCC and cook monthly dinners that bring together the neighbors of the Redbank community. The partnership allows students to truly see the good that a hearty meal can do, and to be grateful for the meals that they do have. Many of the children of the Redbank community will sometimes go to the monthly dinners alone, playing with friends on one side of the gym, and bringing home leftovers for their families that could not attend.

Students Derek Haley and Dierdree Glassford were in awe, with smiles beaming as they watched how happy and connected this community was, and how much they loved the food. Helping to serve, and then getting to also sit in and eat with the community, the students felt a sense of pride. “At the end of the night an older gentleman who had lent us a hand in unloading the food came up to me and clasped my arm, asking me if I was the one to make the peach cobbler. After replying that I was indeed the maker behind the cobbler he rewarded my efforts with a huge grin, saying it was perfection! The feeling of accomplishment and joy I felt after that was more than any paycheck,” reflected Dierdree.

The students also found that they could inspire others, including a young girl who was extremely interested in what it took to be a chef, asking question after question, and saying that maybe one day she can get a scholarship and become a chef “just like you!” The students found that by just doing their job, they were effecting so much more than they could have ever imagined.

When asked about how she felt about the ongoing project with WEX. Inc., Chef Jill stated, “This project is gaining momentum and the energy continues to build. I was so proud of our two culinary students that represented SMCC on Wednesday. They pitched in with the food service, enthusiastically engaged with the people from the neighborhood, WEX and Opportunity Alliance. I could tell from their beaming faces that their being involved with this ‘giving back’ to the community gave them something far richer and greater than just the sense of accomplishment of cooking a meal for this crowd.”

Always reaching further with her employees and teaching them to aspire to be better at everything they do, this was just one more way to give them an eye-opening experience and the effect that good food can have when bringing a community together.

Some other accomplishments that the McKernan Center kitchen have been involved in lately have been their dedication to donating fresh produce, and any unused meals to SMCC’s Captains Cupboard. Not only that, but recently Chef Jill Hannaford has taken on 4 Culinary Externship students, letting them focus on their own personal goals in their field, and giving them the resources to make something out of it.

Dierdree Glassford has worked for the McKernan for a little over 6 months now, and this is what she had to say about the experience, “Working for the McKernan Center has completely changed my view of food. Before I came to SMCC for culinary, I knew nothing. When I started here I was a complete rookie, and now I feel as though I can handle myself fairly well in the kitchen, I take pride and care in my work, and if I have questions, I know how to find the answers to them. I have learned so much from working under Chef Jill, and I wouldn’t give this experience up for the world. Not only that, but she has given me the opportunity to give back to my community, something I am very passionate about, and very grateful for.”

What’s next for SMCC’s Culinary Arts students? Well, with great mentors and opportunities like these, the sky is the limit!