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Making It Great For ’68 Part 2

Making It Great For ’68 Part 2
Posted on 02/13/2019
The Jefferson High School saint mascot decorates the tables at the Lamar Street Center in Arvada as part of the 50th reunion dinner for the school’s Class of 1968.The load-in and setup are parts of swanky catering that most people don’t get to see. Warren Tech culinary arts students were at the Lamar Street Center in Arvada several hours before the first guests arrive for Jefferson High School’s 50th reunion party. They transported everything they made back at their Warren Tech teaching kitchen, along with everything required to serve it.

“The chafer pans which keep everything hot before we serve it. All the utensils, tongs, spatulas…We have to get our buckets for sanitizers, our rags, all of our equipment,” explained Warren Tech student Tatiana Murphy. “If we forget anything, we’re out of luck. So we need to be extra prepared and make sure we have extra stuff just in case one broke or we lose it or something.”

Insulated boxes and sheet trays kept the food at just the right temperature, and there was a lot of it to transfer to the serving tables.

“For our appetizers, or hors-d'oeuvres is what they are, we have empanadas. They have green chili stuffing with chorizo in them. They have a horseradish sauce to go along with that,” said Warren Tech student Rachel Strotz. “We also have pork belly as an hors-d'oeuvre…and then we have the salmon and cod, [as well as] filet mignon wrapped in bacon on little skewers. We also have a vegetable strudel.”

The minutes ticked down as the main dishes are put out. There were endless details to finesse, including the finishing touches on over three hundred desserts. There was urgency, but not panic, and that was because Warren Tech’s culinary arts program, and its chef instructor, Joachim Schaaf, have a long history of catering opportunities.

“We always do the Good News Breakfast, that’s a standard for many, many years. We do Veterans Affairs in the fall. Many are nonprofit,” said Schaff.

The last sterno was lit, and somehow, it all came together just as the doors open for the Jefferson High School Class of 1968.

It was one thing to make the appetizers; quite another to serve them. These Warren Tech students were full-service.

“I’m excited everyone is liking it out there. I’m picking up plates and asking everyone how the food is,” said Murphy. “I just love seeing everyone’s reaction when they see everything on the tables and how much we’re making.”

“Oh, they did a fabulous job. The food was just remarkable,” added reunion committee member Steve Legault. “The kids are doing really well serving. They’re just doing great.”

The students had a great time serving the Class of 1968.

“I really enjoy doing things like that just because I love helping people. Just to bring joy to people and to be able to help out so that they can have an event like this and be able to come together and do their reunion,” said Strotz. “It’s mostly joy is the greatest thing. It makes you happy seeing everybody else happy.”

“It’s relieving to know that we did a good job and that we got it all done and in time and finished everything for everyone,” added Murphy. “The only thing that we don’t like is the cleanup part. Other than that, it’s pretty good.”

“Total success,” concluded Schaff.

See the JPS-TV version of this story here or below.

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