AT A time when poverty and employment are at their highest, retired award-winning chef Eric de Jonge saw an opportunity to use his skills and experience to help teach young people more about preparing and cooking healthy meals.
Eric and his wife, Marion, retired to Haenertsburg a few years ago.
In 2013, the Ackermans Pick’n Pay Foundation kindly agreed to sponsor a group of young women who were selected from neighbouring rural villages. The trainees had no former cooking experience or training.
Eric ran the clinic in the village hall in Haenertsburg where the students were taught basic skills such as food preparation, hygiene, table setting and presentation.
They were also given a basic wine training course, teaching them a few small, important things about wine and how to serve it. The aim was to provide them with enough basic skills so they would be able to find employment in the hospitality industry.
As a result of the clinic, three teams participated in the cooking competition during the Kiwi Fruit Festival in April 2013.
Two of the trainees qualified for a bursary worth R69 000 each and were enrolled in the National Youth Development Chef Training Programme. Quite a few of the trainees have been offered jobs at a catering company and have found employment in the local hospitality trade.
Ackermans Pick n Pay Foundation agreed to another sponsorship for the cooking clinic and 10 young students were selected to participate and be trained.
At the same time, a trainee trainer will be trained to ensure sustainability and the continuation of the training process in the area. Social development has always been a big part of Haenertsburg and this clinic has certainly had a huge impact on the young people in the surrounding rural areas in helping to alleviate poverty and unemployment.
The trainees, upon completion of their course, will again have the opportunity to seek employment and they will also be assisting some of the professional chefs during the Kiwi Fruit Festival Cooking Competition on May 3 and 4 in Haenertsburg. One of the trainees was grabbed by one of the local restaurants and assisted them in the kitchen over Easter, thereby gaining even more experience.
For more information, contact Eric at 083 468 2043.
