Teacher Tuesday: On Food & Gratitude

As a child, I was always surprised when I heard people say that Thanksgiving was their favorite holiday. “But there aren’t any presents!” I would say with bemusement to my siblings, and we would wonder at the oddness of adults.

Now I get it. 

I love the anticipation leading up to Thanksgiving. My kids start texting their travel plans early in the month. I begin my list making – Family Favorite Recipes to Make, New Recipes to Try, Grocery Shopping for the 1^st Week of November, Grocery Shopping for the 2^nd Week, Grocery Shopping for the 3^rd Week, Cooking Plans for the three days leading up to Thanksgiving, and Chores that Need to Get Done Before the Family Arrives. 

Every picture of a golden brown and glistening turkey makes my stomach rumble.  The aisles of the grocery stores are filled with amazing food items I want to try and incorporate into my Thanksgiving recipes.  Memories of the savory smells of sage, thyme, melted butter, and caramelized onions tantalize my mind as I try to stay focused on my daily responsibilities.

 My husband and I spend our evenings leading up to the family’s homecoming freshening up bedrooms and bathrooms, and shopping for new movies to watch late into the night with the kids. Prayers fill our quiet times – “God, please let all our loved ones stay healthy. Keep their cars running smoothly, and keep them safe as they’re driving home. Bless our time together with love and laughter and fun new memories. Teach us to be mindful of all Your blessings and let gratitude fill our home and hearts. Amen. And please don’t let the oven break down. Amen… again.”

A lot of the staff and students at Shepherds College share my love for this holiday, for all the delicious food shared with family & friends, and for a time set aside for purposeful gratitude.  

“Although I love the traditional turkey, stuffing, etc., the food I most look forward to is my wife Emilie’s sweet potato casserole. Her recipe isn’t topped with marshmallows, but is instead made with mashed sweet potatoes and a crunchy pecan and brown sugar topping. Yum!”  ~  Mr. Gaschke

 

“I’m so thankful for all the people at Shepherds College, the staff and students.”  ~ Kati, student

“I love a good stuffing. My father-in-law makes stuffing with Italian sausage and it is phenomenal. I also love gravy over everything!”  ~ Mr. DeCiccio

"My favorite food at Thanksgiving is green bean casserole. The thing I am thankful about at Shepherds College is that I am able to have the opportunity to grow in maturity and social skills. This school has made a huge positive impact on my life."  ~ Suzanne, student

“My FAVORITE food for Thanksgiving is my Grandma’s green bean casserole!! It’s a secret family recipe so I can’t share it… all I can tell you is that it is amazing!

I am thankful for the growth I have seen in the students this semester. They have worked very hard!”  ~ Mrs. Kolkman

 

“I love the devil’s food cake and apple cider. I’m thankful for all the friends and staff members who love me at Shepherds College.”  ~ Anthony, student

“My favorite Thanksgiving food is turkey, crock-pot stuffing and my aunt’s sweet potato casserole.

I have so much to be thankful for – my hard-working and creative staff, the opportunity to teach On and For a Purpose, and the students’ growth toward Appropriate Independence.”  ~ Miss Houk

 

“I love French Silk Pie! I’m thankful for the Academic Advisors.”  ~ Megan, student

 “The foods I look forward to the most on Thanksgiving – turkey, mashed potatoes, deviled eggs and pumpkin pie! I am so thankful that my students make me laugh!”  ~ Mrs. Luchterhand

 

“My favorite Thanksgiving food is homemade rolls. I am thankful for my friends.”  ~ Katherine, student

 

“I love mashed potatoes! I think they’re delicious!

I’m thankful for the great conversations I’ve had with the students while driving this semester. I love when they open up and feel comfortable sharing what is going on in their lives with me!”  ~ Mrs. Patton

 

“My favorite food is sweet potatoes. I’m thankful for friends who love me so much.”  ~ Andrew, student

 “I’m thankful for the students’ enthusiasm. It’s a great feeling to be greeted with so much joy and energy!”  ~ Mrs. Konopasek

“My favorite food is green bean casserole and I’m thankful for all the fun outings we go on at Shepherds College.”  ~ Krista, student

 

 “I’m looking forward to Elegant Farmer’s brown bag, caramel apple pie.

“I’m thankful that I work with such a high caliber, creative, passionate and caring group of people, and I’m thankful for the impact the students have made in my life.”  ~ Mr. Canright

"My favorite food is Pumpkin Cheesecake. I'm thankful for my Academic Advisor, Miss Pollard. She has helped steer me in the right direction of how I'm supposed to be acting and following the rules."  ~ Jonathan, student

“I am thankful for all my students and the joy, diversity, and energy they bring into my life!! They are all wonderful, and I’m thankful to have a small part in their lives.”  ~ Miss Pollard

 

“Turkey and pumpkin pie! I’m thankful I can be at Shepherds College.”  ~ Alex, student

“I love plain sweet potatoes without brown sugar or marshmallows on top. I think they are so delicious just the way they are. I like to savor the flavor, with maybe just a little butter, but it’s not required to enjoy!

I’m thankful coming in on Sunday evenings to be with the first-year ladies as the overnight person. It is so refreshing to see them outside of the academic arena and have time to just talk to them.”  ~ Mrs. Harvey

“My parents are coming for Thanksgiving so I’m hosting for the first time! I’m most looking forward to potatoes – mashed and sweet! My husband Matt is looking forward to the HUGE turkey my parents are lugging all the way from New York, and pumpkin cheesecake!

I am thankful for two things – the support of my supervisors and the way that God continually uses Shepherds College to sanctify me, to make me more like Him. I think I often forget that God has me here to accomplish His own will within me, not just so I can serve.”  ~ Mrs. Cyr

Mr. Wright's favorite Thanksgiving dishes.

From the Shepherds College family to yours –

We pray that you find love reflected in each face seated around your table, that you find joy in the memory of each precious face that is no longer there, and that each morsel of delicious food, each beloved family tradition, and each moment of shared happiness ultimately serves to bring you closer to the One who provided it all.

Have a Blessed & Happy Thanksgiving!

 



Shepherds College - Guiding Your Transition to Appropriate Independence. Please visit us at www.shepherdscollege.edu.

On Bread Alone

Do you remember the Food Pyramid and the massive block of carbs that filled the entire base? It allowed us to feed our children spongy white bread, mac ‘n’ cheese, SpaghettiOs, and chicken nuggets and feel pretty righteous about it.

Growing up, my little brother would eat a piece of white bread between two pieces of white bread and call it a bread sandwich. My mom would smile and say, “Well, we don’t have to worry about Stevie getting enough bread in his diet, do we?” In her eyes, and in the eyes of caring mothers everywhere, little Stevie was eating three of the required six to eleven servings of breads and grains.  The other three to eight servings would be consumed in large bowlfuls of Count Chocula cereal.

The Food Pyramid has gone through several evolutions throughout the last couple of decades. Each new version soon morphed into another hopefully clearer representation of a healthy American diet. 

But each version failed. 

Heart disease, strokes and obesity were on the rise, and Americans were more confused than ever about their diets.  One reason? Servings were mentioned, but serving sizes were obscure.

Then, in June of 2011, the USDA released a visual that all people can understand – a dinner plate. The plate was divided into serving sections representing healthy food groups – fruits, vegetables, grains, dairy and protein. They called this helpful diet planning tool MyPlate. 

MyPlate was designed so the average user could see at a glance that half of their plate should be filled with vegetables and fruit with the rest of the plate taken up by smaller amounts of grain, protein and dairy products. The interactive version on the website was programmed to allow the user to click each section to see pictures of what serving sizes for specific foods looked like.

It’s clear and it’s smart – just how we like to teach at Shepherds College.

Recently, I had the chance to visit Mrs. Pechous and her Daily Living Skills class. A student’s parents had donated 25 MyPlates to the school which gave Mrs. Pechous the perfect teaching opportunity to lead her first-year class in portion size and healthy eating. 

Mrs. Pechous started her class by having students work in pairs to identify foods from different food groups.

The students had pictures of various foods, and Mrs. Pechous instructed them to create a balanced meal using items from each of the food groups.

Mrs. Pechous also demonstrated portion sizes using the Helping Hands method:

Palm = serving of meat, fish, poultry (3-4 oz)

Fist = cereal, soup, casserole, fresh fruit, raw veggies, salad (1 cup)

Thumb = salad dressing, sour cream, cream cheese, peanut butter, hard cheese (1-2 Tbsp)

Thumbnail = butter, margarine, mayo, oil (1 tsp)

1 cupped hand = pasta, rice, beans, potatoes, cooked veggies, pudding, ice cream (1/2 cup)

2 cupped hands = chips, crackers, pretzels (1 ounce)

The students then had the opportunity to practice the skill in a real-life application. Each person was given a MyPlate plate and asked to make a salad, putting each ingredient in the proper amount in the correct food section.

 

In this R.E.A.L. lesson, the students learned that they can take a measure of control over their own health and well-being.  What a great way to empower the students in their lifetime of Appropriate Independence!

Shepherds College - Guiding Your Transition to Appropriate Independence. Please visit us at www.shepherdscollege.edu.

Fashion Frenzy

I miss blogging.

I come to work every morning and BLOG is written on my schedule in big, bold letters. Sometimes the word is underlined, sometimes it’s circled, and sometimes it has six exclamation points after it. Lately, it’s the only task on my list that is left undone and unchecked.

I have a good excuse, really I do. The blog doesn’t have a deadline.  

The second half of my year is filled with writing appeals to meet drop dates, writing magazine articles to meet editorial deadlines, writing press releases while news is still HOT, creating the calendar in time to have it ready for a large volunteer mailing group, writing the Shepherds Sunday material to get it to churches prior to Shepherds Sunday, managing the newsletter to meet publishing deadlines, helping in the creation of a commercial that needs to air… in three weeks, promoting events before they actually happen, and on and on and on. 

I’m not complaining – I LOVE almost everything about my job – but lately my schedule doesn’t leave a lot of time or brain space for the undemanding and very patient blog.

But…

Today I’m blogging! And do you know why?

Because I’m sooooo excited about a really unique and fun opportunity for our students to help in the promotion of Shepherds College.

You’ve heard me talk about Apostrophe Magazine before. It’s a magazine written for people with intellectual disabilities, as well as for the people who love and care for them. It’s filled with important information like how-to articles, self-advocacy advice, news, and current issues.  When I first started working for Shepherds, the magazine became a valuable resource to me as I learned about People First Language, disability rights, and books that could help me in my search for more information. There isn’t another magazine out there like it and, over time, I started to think of Apostrophe as a partner and friend in my efforts to promote the college.

Well, (and I’m screaming a little in my head here) not only has Apostrophe Magazine offered us our own editorial space in each issue, but they want our students to do a college fashion layout for their Summer 2014 issue!!! 

How can I concentrate on anything else?!  I can’t focus on the Food For a Day Follow-up appeal, I can’t focus on Friday’s article deadline, I can’t focus on content for the Winter Folder, I can’t think of a topic for the Year End appeal, and the 2014 calendar? WHAT 2014 CALENDAR?! It’s still 2013, and I have a fashion photo shoot to plan!!!

My mind is going in a hundred different directions at once –

 

We need a great photographer… Leibforth Photography! Let’s call Jim and Cathi and see if they’d like to do it. 

Cathi needs special lighting. Should we rent the equipment she would like to have for the shoot? 

We need a backdrop. Do we own a good one? Is a solid color okay or should we jazz it up a bit?

Can we get hair and makeup done? Gateway Cosmetology students did a phenomenal job with our 2013 graduates. Would they be willing to do it again?

Oh goodness, I have another deadline! I have to get all the photos turned in by March 10^th. We’ll have to do the photo shoot early in February. February 1^st? February 5^th? February 12^th? Can we get everyone coordinated for the 1^st?

And who’s everyone? How on earth are we going to choose the students for the shoot? They’re all so blasted cute! Do we select students based on grades? On behavior? How about a lottery… or maybe we should announce, ‘everyone with a birthday in February, come get your picture taken!’ 

Or could we just photograph all 59 of them and let the magazine decide which ones to print?I like that.

And, good grief, the clothes… how do we get clothes to photograph? Does Apostrophe have advertising contracts with certain stores? I’ll email Jim, the editor, and ask how to do this. While I’m waiting I’ll just peruse the fashion sections in all the old issues. Take notes. Well, hmmmm... it looks like they photograph the models at the stores. That makes sense, but now we have to figure out how to get the students on location. But what location?! Jiiiimmmmmm!!! Email me back! 

Let’s focus on what I can control right now. I’ll write down styles of college clothing we’d like to feature – comfy classroom clothing, lounging in the dorm clothing, heading to basketball practice clothing, Sunday best and social event clothing, interview for an important job internship clothing, did I forget anything? Shoes! I forgot shoes. And accessories. I wonder if the store will let us model those as well…

 

I need to start thinking like a marketer. How can I make the most of this opportunity to benefit the college and Leibforth Photography and Gateway and Apostrophe Magazine and the store…? What store? Jiiiiiimmmmm!!!

I should create a large sign featuring all the logos and place it on an easel in front of the shoot so shoppers can see all the businesses involved. Maybe I should write a press release so the local papers can share the fun with our community.

Whew!!! Jim just emailed. The store is up to me. I just need to find a chain or franchise that’s nationwide. Should I call Boston Store, or JcPenney, or Target, or Sears, or… hmmm… I don’t know what else is in the area. Research time…

For the last couple of minutes, you just lived inside my head. Unfortunately for my co-workers though, my adrenaline is pumping too hard for all this stuff to stay inside my head. I’ve been rambling, bustling, laughing, shaking, planning, and thinking loudly since late last week. It’s been very hard to focus on anything else, and I’m unintentionally making it very difficult for other Shepherds staff to focus on anything else as well.

Mrs. Harvey, with all her great wisdom, said to me, “Susan, since you can’t concentrate on your other work, and you’re so excited about the fashion shoot, why don’t you put all that energy into writing a blog about the fashion shoot?”

So there you have it. I did it. I check-marked BLOG off of my to-do list for today.

Just don’t expect to see your 2014 calendar any time soon.

If you don’t want to miss any of the Shepherds College editorials or the photos of our students, please visit the Apostrophe Magazine website to subscribe. It’s only $19.99 a year. If you enter SHEPHERDS (all in CAPS) in the promo box, Apostrophe will donate $5 per subscription back to Shepherds.

 

Shepherds College - Guiding Your Transition to Appropriate Independence. Please visit us at www.shepherdscollege.edu.