 |
||||||||
 |
||||||||
|
||||||||
|
Nourishing the body
By LOGAN NEILL BROOKSVILLE -- Standing at the head of the cafeteria lunch line, Joanne Clark beams a big smile to her young dining guests as they approach. It's easy to see why this is her favorite time of her busy work day. As the rush of kindergartners gathers before her, the children peer excited through the doorway, asking what's being offered for lunch. "Pizza!" one pupil shouts to her classmate. "That's really cool." Such nods of approval warm the heart of Clark, who manages one of the school system's largest elementary school lunch programs. Each day, she and her staff at Chocachatti Elementary prepare lunch for about 500 students at the school. They also cook an additional 700 meals that are trucked to nearby J.D. Floyd Elementary. But for the woman who recently earned the honor of Hernando County's School Employee of the Year, the hard work and diligence behind her daily mission are more a labor of love than anything else. "I love to cook, and I love cooking for kids," says Clark, a grandmother of four who has managed the Chocachatti Elementary kitchen since the school opened four years ago. "I really don't consider this a job. It's more fun than any job should be." Arriving at 6:30 every morning, Clark's day begins with routine procedures that include monitoring temperatures on all of the kitchen's refrigeration equipment. By the time her eight-member staff arrives, she has already started preparing for the 150 breakfasts served to students each day. A walk through the spotless kitchen reveals why Chocachatti Elementary's lunch program continues to grow each year. A former restaurant owner, Clark enlisted many of her long-learned practices to create a more enjoyable work environment. To break up the monotony, Clark installed a CD player to play background music for her staff, most of whom have worked with Clark at the school since Day One. Another popular decision Clark made was to rotate jobs each week among the staff. "No one should ever feel this is a dead-end job," said Clark. "I want everyone to feel as if they're part of a team -- one that has fun at work." Clark says she was grateful to learn upon her hiring at the magnet school for the arts that Chocachatti Elementary's lunch program would offer a different take on school cafeteria food. By embracing modern restaurant-style cooking, she felt both the school and its students would benefit greatly in the long run. "When I was young, kids used to dread what came out of school cafeteria every day," she said. "It was boring. What I try to do is get them excited about lunch and to get them to want to eat healthy." Clark says that in order to do that she must provide a balanced selection of items that are agreeable to the taste buds of youngsters who've grown up eating fast food. The bygone days of school lunch staples such as potato turbate , meatloaf, and beef and macaroni have been replaced by cheeseburgers, pizza and chicken nuggets. The trick, says Clark, is to make it more healthful than the kind served at the drive-through window. "Kids all eat with their eyes," said Clark. "It just takes a little psychology to make them think they're getting a cheeseburger or fries from McDonald's. We don't fry anything, and we don't go wild with spices. I want parents to be happy with what we serve their children." Each week, Clark prepares menus that allow the pupils to choose, within reason, what they wish to eat. Along with prepared entrees, students are allowed two side dishes, including fresh fruits, salads and vegetables and one dessert. For the most part, the students make good choices, said Clark, "Kids are definitely of the mind to eat healthier, and I'm glad to be part of that," she said. "The thing I've noticed is that less food tends to go in the garbage after they're finished. What better compliment can you give a cook?"
 © 2006 • All Rights Reserved • Tampa Bay Times
490 First Avenue South • St. Petersburg, FL 33701 • 727-893-8111 
|
From today's Hernando Times | ||||||||||||||||
