Assumption College School Website

Students Bond Over Culinary Creations

When a group of teens gather for a plate of tacos or bowls of steaming KD, you just never know where the conversation is going to go.

Twice a week about 14 special education students at Assumption College come together over a meal they plan and prepare with the help of several educational assistants.

Dubbed the Creative Cooks Lunch Club, the gatherings ensure the kids are eating properly and help develop life skills they will be able to use at home or on the job.

"But it's not just about cooking," said Mary Bradford, who heads the special education department at Assumption.

"When students sit down for a meal they open up, they talk. We try to make sure everything is OK at home and at school. Lunch is incidental."

The meals are basic kid fare: pasta and meatballs; grilled cheese and soup; Kraft Dinner and hot dogs; Sloppy Joes and fries; pita pizzas, hamburgers, and pork and beans. They also whip up salads and veggies and sample exotic "fruits of the week."

"It's better than sitting in the cafeteria," said Janice Ambeau, 15, a club member.

Bradford said the special education students face a variety of challenges and are working at a range of academic levels. Some will find jobs, perhaps in a restaurant. Others, Bradford said, will live in group homes.

The lunch club meals are prepared in a kitchen in one of the special education classrooms.

"These are realistic meals they can cook for themselves and their families," said Bradford. "It teaches them proper kitchen hygiene, culinary and knife skills, dishwashing and table etiquette."

Jen Kings-Nagy, an educational assistant in the special education department, conceived the lunch club this year.

Part of her job includes supervising the cafeteria during lunch hours. She says she saw some of the students "maybe not making the best decisions and not eating the best lunches. After they ate, they were at loose ends."

"They're bright, fun, interesting kids," said Bradford. "We don't want them to fall into an at-risk category."

Four educational assistants, including Kings-Nagy, Liz Hardwick, Nancy Trebilock and Julie Dreyer, give up their own lunch hours twice a week to supervise the lunch club.

Grade 12 student Matt Sowinski, a lunch club member, said his culinary specialty is grilled cheese, but he's getting adept at preparing noodles and different types of meat dishes. His says lunch conversation tends toward favourite movies and games and what goes on at school.

"I like getting together with my friends and eating a big lunch," said Tony Downey, also in Grade 12.

Supplies for the lunch club have come mainly from Assumption staff donations of money and food. Bradford said they are always looking for contributions. Anyone interested can contact her at 519- 751-2030, ext. 368.

She said students in the lunch club have "taken on leadership roles we didn't know they could."

"These are really outgoing and likable kids," said Kings-Nagy. "They just need a little bit of extra help so they can get where they want to go."

Written By: Michelle Ruby - The Expositor