Culinary Arts Program - Father Joe's Villages

Centerpiece Village News, MaY 2009 9
St. Vincent de Paul Village Culinary Arts Program
Serving up success
The Culinary Arts Program (CAP) at St. Vincent de Paul
Village provides residents a recipe for success in the food service
industry—and the ingredients necessary to make it all come together.
As they participate in Village rehabilitation programs to regain their lives,
CAP students also obtain the knowledge, certification and skills they need
for rewarding and fulfilling careers in the food service industry.
The Culinary Arts Program mixes individual determination with inspired
instructors, proven curriculum and the support of the community to create
the sweet taste of success.
“Cooking is one of the oldest arts and one which has
rendered us the most important service in civic life.”
–Jean-Anthelme Brillat-Savarin, 1755–1826, celebrated French food critic
CAP graduates with Father Joe Carroll and program instructors (in red jackets) Tessa Maxsimic, left, and Heather Dunnam.

10 Village News, MaY 2009
Center
Cooking
Culinary Arts
up
Program
a dream career
The St. Vincent de Paul Village
Culinary Arts Program (CAP)
is an intensive, eight-month training
program that consists of six months
of classroom and lab work followed
by a two-month internship.
Students, who are primarily
residents of St. Vincent de Paul
Village, study college level
curriculum, obtain ServSafe training
and CPR/first aid certification,
all while gaining valuable work
experience in institutional and
restaurant-style venues. Students
receive relevant job skills, including
professional communication, goal
setting, teamwork, and responsibility.
They receive assistance in career
counseling and job placement, free
culinary uniforms and supplies
upon graduation.
In addition to their rigorous
curriculum, CAP students also work
weekly at Mo-Joe’s, the student-run
quick-service restaurant located
at Father Joe’s warehouse/auction
facility in Otay Mesa, where they
learn the daily demands of restaurant
operations. Students also take a 60hour
class in job seeking skills, which
includes workplace expectations.
How it all started
Mary Case, vice president of
programs for St. Vincent de Paul
Village, began the Culinary Arts
Program in 1988. Wanting to
provide Village residents with job
training that would translate into
fulfilling careers, Case created CAP
and patterned it after the College of
Culinary Arts at Johnson & Wales
University. “The program’s benefits
proved twofold – residents received
training to enter a career in food
service and we got the manpower
we needed to run our large-volume
kitchens that prepare over 1 million
meals annually,” Case says.
The food service industry remains
a stable generator of jobs and careers,
and employment in the restaurant
industry continues to outpace the
overall economy. In San Diego, jobs
are abundant in tourism, the city's
third largest industry.
“The valuable in-class and
kitchen experience combined with
the special catering events and
fundraising activities create an
amazing opportunity for the CAP
students,” says Heather Dunnam,
CAP supervisor/instructor.
In addition to the food service
needs of the Village, CAP students
participate in a wide array of food
arts, including preparing pies for the
Thanksgiving Day 5K, cooking for
special events such as the US Open
and donor appreciation meals, and
making cookies and pastries for
monthly graduation celebrations.
CAP students work in an
atmosphere that requires flexibility
and adaptability of a large-volume
kitchen. For example, during San
Diego’s October 2007 wildfires
students responded immediately
to the crisis and prepared an
additional 500 meals a day to
serve to those displaced by the
fires. Students are also called upon
to change menu plans for the
Village at a moment’s notice when
a donation of food is made that
needs to be prepared immediately.
When students begin their twomonth
internship they receive a
black chef ’s jacket. Upon completion
of the program they are recognized
at a special graduation by Father
Joe Carroll, president of St. Vincent
de Paul Village, who presents them
with a medallion, a set of Black
Diamond knives and two books to
start their culinary library: “The
Food Lover’s Companion” and “On
Cooking –A Textbook of Culinary
Fundamentals.” After graduation
they receive two sets of jackets,
pants, and shoes.
A partnership
The Culinary Arts Program is a
partnership between the Village
and San Diego’s corporate, human
services, educational and hospitality
industries. Local restaurants,
hotels and catering companies
have provided CAP students with
real-world experience through
internships which typically lead
to full-time employment after
graduation. n
at St. Vincent de Paul Village
C arEEr oPPortunitiES
Baker/Pastry cook | Banquet cook | Cake decorator | Caterer
executive chef | line cook | line supervisor | sous-chef
How you can help…
Provide an internship site – For students, internships mean a chance to enhance their
professional skills and gain valuable experience as new members of the hospitality industry. internships
help CaP students gain valuable hands-on experience and achieve their individual career objectives.
st. Vincent de Paul Village covers workers' compensation during internships.
Give a presentation or host a tour of your facility – educational field trips and intriguing
guest lecturers give students insight to a career in the food service industry.
Hire a CAP graduate – By hiring or referring our graduates you can become a key player in
their success stories (see page 12) and add to the quality of your staff.
For more information on how to provide an internship, sponsor a field trip, be a guest speaker, or
hire a CAP graduate, please contact Heather Dunnam at 619.446.1134.
Make a contribution – CaP relies on the generosity of our donors to keep the program running
and support students, empowering them to end the cycle of homelessness. For more information on
how your gift can help, please contact Margot Howard at 619.446.2108.

piece
Village News, MaY 2009 11
The Program
The intensive eight-month Culinary arts Program includes classroom and kitchen
lab instruction where students learn cooking skills and teamwork through hands-on
experience. students study in six modules, each taking four weeks to complete.
Module
Safety and Sanitation
Module
International Cuisines
Baking and Pastry
Module
1
• First aid certification
• ServSafe (food handler)
Certification
• Food safety
3
• Culinary history and
background
• France, Italy, Spain,
China, Japan, etc.
• Voculabulary, terminology,
techniques
5
• Understanding pastry
and bakery principles
• Desserts, cakes,
ice cream, breads, etc.
• Chocolate, candies,
decorations, etc.
Nutrition
Culinary Skills
Cost Control
Module
Module
Module
2
• Understanding nutrition
labels and concepts
• Planning menus
• Dietary restrictions
and concerns
4
• Basic culinary skills
• Knife cuts and skills
• Equipment, tool and
product identification
6
• Understanding food cost,
labor cost, etc.
• Costing out recipes and
menu prices
• Working with budgets
and food ordering
Encore Capital
makes generous
contribution
By Margot Howard
The Culinary Arts Program re ceived a
welcome contribu tion from Encore
Capital Group, Inc.
“Our company really wanted to contribute
to a solid organization in San Diego that
has a demonstrated track record in helping
people obtain jobs and becoming good
managers of their personal finances,” says
Glen Freter, Encore’s vice president and
controller for the company.
Encore Capital Group, Inc., and its subsidiaries
purchase and manage con sumer
debt portfolios and provide bankruptcy
services to the finance industry.
“We are all too familiar with the difficult
situations individual people face sometimes,
financially,” says Freter. “We really are
impressed with the full range of services
St. Vincent de Paul Village provides that
help individuals and families stabilize and
move forward.”
The generous gift from Encore provides
training materials for CAP students. Encore
also helps underwrite the cost of some
lifelong tools students receive; including the
hard-earned chef ’s coat they are presented
with when they start their internships, and,
upon graduation, a set of Black Diamond
knives, and the culinary bibles “The Food
Lover’s Companion” and “On Cooking –A
Textbook of Culinary Fundamentals.” n
Margot Howard is a member of Father Joe’s
Villages Charitable Giving Team.
CAP students and graduates have interned
or worked at these restaurants and food
service operations:
Bertrand at Mister a’s
Chateau la Jolla inn
Coronado island Marriott
Courtyard Marriott san Diego Downtown
DoubleTree Hotel san Diego Mission Valley
embassy suites Hotel
Hilton san Diego airport, Harbor island
Hilton san Diego Bayfront
Hilton san Diego Mission Valley
House of Blues Restaurant
Hyatt Regency Mission Bay spa & Marina
Kaiser Permanente (Kaiser Foundation Hospital)
Mancester grand Hyatt
Rainwater’s
shelter Pointe Hotel and Marina
sheraton suites san Diego
sodexo Defense
The westin gaslamp Quarter, san Diego
Town and Country Hotel
University of California, san Diego
w Hotel, san Diego
Yokoz sushi Bar and islander grill

12 Village News, MaY 2009
Centerpiece
A new life, a new career and a new board member
By Tracey sturgis
Before moving into St. Vincent
de Paul Village in 2004, I was a
single mother of four struggling to
find an adequate place to live and
raise my children.
At the time I had my two young
sons while my daughters lived with
their grandfather. After living at
the Village for almost a year, my
daughters came to live with us as
well. It was sort of strange adjusting
to the program and all of the rules,
such as chores and abiding by certain
curfews. While getting used to the
changes, I also focused on completing
the basics of the program. This
included joining the Culinary Arts
Program and eventually becoming
the star student.
Cooking is something that I’ve
always enjoyed and loved doing,
so naturally I did well in the class.
I would even sometimes prepare
Kim Rivera Kim
completed CAP in
January 2009. She
did an internship at
Sodexho MCRD San Diego. The
base liked her so much that they
offered her full-time employment.
“I am now a successful employee
at MCRD’s Officers Mess Hall. My
life has new meaning, and a new
purpose thanks to St. Vincent de
Paul Village and the Culinary Arts
Program,” Kim says.
Carlos Garcia At
58, after a difficult
divorce, Carlos found
himself homeless. A
welder by trade, his health began
to deteriorate after 25 years of
hard labor, and Carlos realized
he needed to take better care of
himself. He entered CAP with
the goal of learning how to cook
healthfully and in one year lost
35 pounds. Carlos loves cooking,
and is known for making tasty
chiles rellenos. Carlos enjoyed his
internship at Embassy Suites and is
currently searching for a job.
some of my grandmother’s special
dessert recipes to serve for lunch
and dinner at the Village.
In time I became the first
recipient of a scholarship granted
by Les Dames d’Escoffier, a group of
well-established women dedicated
to cooking and community
service. This was an outstanding
achievement for me that eventually
led to my first long-term job position
in nutrition and food preparation
at UCSD Medical Center where I’ve
been working for over three years
now.
Although I am very busy with
work and raising my family, I have
begun my post-secondary education
at San Diego City College. I am
currently in my second year as a
part-time student and I am working
toward my associate’s degree in
business management.
With this degree I hope to gain
a higher position at the hospital
Since being in the program at the Village, I have
recognized my potential not only as a mother, but
as a student and as a business woman as well.
Benjamin “Rene”
Segat Rene’s passion
for cooking re-emerged
at the Village. Fifteen
years ago, he promised himself
“no more kitchen.” But he realized
the culinary arts is his calling. “I
am, therefore I cook,” he says. An
internship at Yokoz Grill and Island
Restaurant got Rene back into the
industry. The chefs at Yokoz saw
Rene’s potential and he is now
employed there full time as a cook.
Evelyn Davis Evelyn
has participated as a
CAP student in events
such as the US Open,
the opening of Mo-Joe’s restaurant
at the Village’s Otay Mesa
warehouse, many catering events,
and the Village art show, where
she helped re-create Willy Wonka’s
candy wonderland. Evelyn’s favorite
CAP memory is off-site catering
events. She completed a two-month
internship at Embassy Suites with
Chef Jason Lee. Today, she is
conducting a job search while she
lives at the Village.
2005: As a CAP student, Tracey
sometimes prepared her grandmother's
dessert recipes.
and possibly even open my own
restaurant one day. Since being
in the program at St. Vincent de
Paul Village, I have recognized
my potential not only as a mother,
but as a student and as a business
woman as well.
Every day, I am constantly
working harder and striving to
reach my goals not only for myself,
but also for the futures of my kids. n
Our students
Since its inception, the Culinary Arts Program has helped thousands of adults find a steady career path. Here's a
look at what some recent graduates are up to.
Odila Doble A single
mother, Odila entered
CAP not realizing how
much she had to offer.
As she puts it, “I was a little girl in a
woman’s body.” Initially the rigorous
program was a more demanding
schedule than she was used to, but
with the help of her CAP instructor,
Odila developed healthy work
habits. She completed an internship
at Mister A’s restaurant and is now a
personal chef in Orange County.
Miguel Garcia In
addition to becoming
skilled in the culinary
arts, Miguel also
developed lifelong friend ships
as a CAP student. During the
garde manger (decorative dish)
studies, Miguel discovered he is
an artist when it comes to carving
watermelons, which came in handy
while catering parties in La Jolla
and Del Mar. Miguel completed his
two-month internship at the House
of Blues, where he is now employed
full time.
2007: At her graduation, Tracey received a scholarship from Les Dames
d’Escoffier. From left, Janet Burgess, Jeanne Jones, syndicated food columnist;
and Judi Strada presented the scholarship. Edward Hersey, director of support
services at the Village, and Father Joe joined the celebration. “Tracey’s gone
beyond our wildest expectations,” says Jones. “We’re so proud of her.”
2009: Tracey, center, with her children, has a fulfilling career and is a
member of the St. Vincent de Paul Village Board of Directors.
Graduation speaker shares story
My name is walter sayers. Today i
am one year and four months clean
and sober, and have graduated from
the Culinary arts Program. The help
Village staff members steve Masters
and Jon lutack gave me in Recovery
services helped me realize the
person i want to be, and that i don’t
have to do drugs to live my life. i have to tell you CaP wasn’t
easy and sometimes it felt impossible. But i kept on going one
day at a time.
after my training i received an internship at Mister a’s.
The experience i had at Mister a’s was priceless. i don’t feel
i would have been able to work there without the help of the
Career and education program at the Village, or the help of
CaP instructors Heather Dunnam and Tessa Maxsimic. These
experiences have changed my life forever.
Over a year ago i was homeless and on drugs. Today i’m clean
and sober, proud and starting a career i really enjoy. i came here
with a broken heart, and because of st. Vinny’s i will leave here
with a healed life. n
Copy by Patricia M. Walsh, Heather Dunnam and Tessa Maxsimic. Photos by Kathleen Wise,
Emily Velez-Confer and Patricia M. Walsh. Design by Kathleen Wise.