he Culinary Arts class has been through a series of challenges this year, the main one being a change in teachers, but they continue to fill the halls with delightful smells. The new Culinary Arts teacher and her students will be delivering cheeseballs for their fundraiser today in order to raise money for their classroom, kitchen, groceries, and equipment.
“I want us to be a little bit more self-sufficient for ingredients, and I have seen that there is some equipment that we would like to have but we don’t have,” culinary arts teacher Laura Meister said. “It’s very important to me that we give back, so this is the first of hopefully many [fundraisers] while I’m here.”
The students have prepared and will be delivering three types of cheeseballs that will sell for $15 each: Traditional Beef and Cheddar, Jalapeno Popper, and Cranberry Jalapeno. The person buying is only allowed to use Cash or Check (which is payable to FHS), and pick up will be today from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m.
“The reason we started with cheeseballs is because it was something that you didn’t have to cook, and it’s something relatively easy that they can make for their families or share with others,” culinary arts teacher Laura Meister said. “The students are gonna benefit from the money we bring.”
The new Culinary Arts teacher, Ms. Laura (Hart) Meister, joined the staff late into the school year due to an unexpected teacher shortage. She previously operated her own local restaurant, Hart to Table, that specialized in serving sugar free, grain free, and keto friendly food before permanently shutting down in hopes of new opportunities. When asked, at first, to consider filling in the role, she declined; however, within a week, she made her decision to stay as long as they needed her.
“[Mrs. Gibson] and Mrs. Kirgan convinced me to come in and just talk to [the students], and I think people that teach are very special,” culinary arts teacher Laura Meister said. “[The students are] really amazing, and I have a lot to learn too so I’ve just asked them to be patient with me and we’ll all figure it out together.”
