‘It’s all about making a difference’

Chef Betty Redwood-Brown, Durham Tech culinary arts instructor, is spearheading a new partnership between the College and the Orange Correctional Center in Hillsborough in which she is teaching inmates cooking skills.

“I’m excited to be the instructor,” she said. “It’s awesome!”

Redwood-Brown has a history of working organizations outside the classroom. She said the Orange Correctional program played into her passion for reaching out into the community.

She praised the 11 students’ dedication at the correctional center.

“The students here – if they could cook every day, they would,” she said. “I didn’t have a single student miss a class.”

The students taking her course had two events at the correctional center where they produced full, plated meals served for guests. The students came up with the names for the events, the menu and learned how to work both the front and back of the house in food service.

For Incarcerated Cuisines, the students put together a menu that included Philly cheesesteak egg rolls, a shrimp boil, eggplant lasagna and strawberry banana pudding. For their Dining Behind Bars event, the menu featured shrimp bisque, an apple spinach salad, coconut curry tofu and Asian-glazed salmon, among other items.

There was a wide range of knowledge among her students. Some didn’t know how to make stock or soup, but wanted to learn skills so they could take better care of their families when they are released. Three students had food businesses, though, and Redwood-Brown said her goal was to help them enhance their skills for their businesses.

Redwood-Brown said the experience at the prison has been a learning one for her, as well as her students.  

The first hurdle she encountered was that the inmates had to use bench scrapers instead of knives for food prep. The correctional facility’s kitchen also is small with only two stoves.  

But students relied on each other for assistance in working on their assignments. Redwood-Brown said there was strong camaraderie among them.  

“There was a lot of respect, and everyone looked out for one another in the class,” she said.  

The program has proved extremely popular. Those taking classes include inmates from other prisons in the area, who are brought to Orange Correction to participate.  

Redwood-Brown said she can see the impact she’s having on her students. Her recent graduates wrote her a thank you note, addressing it to Chef Betty, aka Mom.

“It’s all about making a difference in someone else’s life,” she said. “At the end of the day, we’re all trying to reach one goal – to make it better.”