HARTFORD, CT, August 5, 2011 – Hasani Shirley thought the formal dining experience was “pretty cool.” Wayne Clerk said she was excited and honored to have been chosen as a table captain. And Ashley Santamaria’s favorite part of the meal was the fresh green salad consisting of romaine and red lettuce and shaved carrots. Click
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Virtually all of the 275 Hartford children thoroughly enjoyed the luncheon to which they were treated to on the penultimate day of Dream Camp, a five-week program for disadvantaged children that Trinity has hosted for 14 years.
Although the camp is operated by ESF Summer Camps, which has 65 camps in seven states, Trinity’s Dream Camp is one of only two in the country – the other being at Girard College in Philadelphia – where children attend for free, thanks to the generosity of a Trinity alumnus, foundations, and friends of the College.
Thursday’s lunch, held in Mather Hall’s Washington Room, was a special affair. As part of Health Awareness Week and in an effort to combat obesity and encourage children to eat more nutritious meals, Dream Camp and the Vetri Foundation for Children, which creates environments for children that promote healthy lifestyle choices, collaborated to serve a meal prepared by some of the finest chefs in the nation.
The chefs are employed by Vetri Ristorante in Philadelphia and were on hand Thursday to prepare the three-course meal, mingle among the children and help promote healthy eating. The three were Marc Vetri, who has been named one of Food & Wine’s Ten Best Chefs and received the James Beard Award for “Best Chef Mid-Atlantic” in 2005; Jeff Michaud, who won the James Beard Award in 2010; and Tia MacDonald, formerly of Hartford.
The meal they prepared consisted of the green salad with a creamy herb vinaigrette dressing; panzanella salad, whose ingredients included toasted bread, tomatoes, roasted corn, red onions and fresh basil; roasted cod drizzled with olive oil; and cantaloupe and honeydew melon for dessert. To many of the children, the taste sensations were new. Indeed, when asked whether this marked the first time they had ever eaten fish, many hands flew up in the air.
There were two seatings – one at 11:50 a.m. and the other at 12:45 p.m. But before most of the campers were allowed to enter the Washington Room, a couple dozen children who had been named table captains donned white jackets, received their serving instructions and set the tables, which had already been decked out with white tablecloths emblazoned with the Dream Camp insignia. The table captains also were responsible for filling the water glasses, demonstrating proper dining etiquette, carrying trays of food to the tables, and clearing the plates after everyone had eaten.
Shirley, 9, and Clerk, 11, said they had been selected as table captains because they had been “good campers” and well behaved during the first month of Dream Camp. Both said they were thrilled to have been chosen. “I think it’s pretty cool,” said Shirley. “I think it’s really fun.”
Michael Rouse, president, executive director and co-founder of ESF, Inc., greeted the campers as they filed into the room, reminded them to be on their best behavior, introduced the chefs and circulated about the room, making sure that all of the children were enjoying themselves.
Rouse said he was delighted that the campers had been exposed to a fine dining experience and a healthy meal, adding that he was “enjoying the moment” given that the last day of Dream Camp was the following day. Rouse was especially proud that the campers had the opportunity to eat food that was fresh, organically prepared and not microwaved.
Dan Swartz, director of Trinity’s Dream Camp, served as master of ceremonies and a cheerleader of sorts. “How cool is this?” Swartz asked rhetorically as the children took their seats and quieted down. Swartz urged the campers “to try everything” even foods that they hadn’t eaten before.
Iliana Rodriguez, who is a counselor in her fourth year after five years as a camper, said that by “trying everything,” the children had an opportunity to amass points for their respective teams. At the beginning of camp, the children had been divided into blue and gold teams and the one that garnered the most points by the end of Dream Camp would win a trophy.
Rodriguez is a student at Capital Community College in Hartford. Indeed, 100 percent of the children who start and finish Dream Camp as well as the year-round after-school academic mentoring program have gone on to college. Three of them are Trinity students.
Also on hand Thursday were Trinity President James F. Jones, Jr., and Paul Raether, ’68, chairman of the Board of Trustees, who were both outfitted with white server’s jackets. Jones called the formal lunch with its nutritious food “one of the most transformative experiences the kids have ever had.”