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By Jill Brown

Monessen’s Salvation Army, 308 Schoonmaker Ave., offered a unique summer camp for young adults, ages 11-15, to learn basic cooking skills and everything about food, from careers to nutrition, while having fun, too.

Captain Sue Thwaite and Chef Nino Forlini on graduation day, behind their students, holding diplomas.

The two-week program taught by experienced chef Nino Forlini took place from June 22 to July 3, 2015.

Forlini said, “The life-skills are here, and them [the 12 students] learning it are going to help them throughout their lives.”

Forlini, of Monessen, who graduated from Mylan Culinary Arts Program in Michigan, has been a certified chef for about 40 years. He said, “I would like to have the students come away with self-confidence [in cooking] and a basic understanding and knowledge of nutrition. Cooking food at home is much healthier than eating out - and much more rewarding.”

One day at the camp, Forlini’s son, Nick, visited to teach the group how to cook fresh homemade pasta. Chef Forlini is as proud of his son as he was of his advanced students in class.

Captain Sue Thwaite with The Salvation Army was also pleased with her cooking program, stating, “Nutrition is a big thing for the kids. If they’re here cooking, they’re not in the streets.” Thwaite called this program “a kick-off camp for the summer,” as more programs are planned, including an adult cooking camp in October, with dates to soon follow.

One young student, Dyamond Roberts, commented that she “learned to be careful of what you put in food, because some people could be allergic.” She said, “I want to be like my mom, because she can cook.”

Friday, July 3rd, graduation day, was a special day for the students, after having worked so hard in class. A special meal was prepared entirely by the students for the ceremony, with limited supervision by Forlini, which included: fresh fruit, shrimp salad, pork, corn on the cob, and pasta. Five of the students were invited to an advanced course the next week.

Captain Thwaite concluded graduation day with a speech, saying, “The idea in presenting this camp was to introduce students to new ideas. As time would have it, I received a grant for $1,000 when I was deciding to do this program. We wanted to teach our youth how to feed themselves well and how to cook. Students, I’m very proud of you.You represent the Salvation Army.”

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