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Welcome to Spotlight. I'm Robin Basselin.
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And I'm Ryan Geertsma. Spotlight uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.
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The Napa Valley is an area of Northern California in the United States. It is known for its excellent wine and amazing food. Many people think this area has the best restaurants in the country. And people travel very far distances to eat the food these restaurants serve.
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However, the food of Napa Valley often costs a lot of money. Many of the people that eat at the area's restaurants are very wealthy. Well-known chefs prepare and cook the food. They are some of the world's best.
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Tim Hammack was one of these successful Napa Valley chefs. He worked at a famous French restaurant called Bouchon. He had great skill and a good job. Many chefs desire to work at Bouchon. But, for Tim, the job was not enough. Today's Spotlight is on Tim and his choice to leave Bouchon. Instead, he decided to cook for the area's poorest and most hungry individuals.
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Being a chef in a Napa Valley restaurant was Tim Hammack's dream. He grew up near Napa Valley, in a working class town. Tim's family was not wealthy. However, they worked hard and enjoyed cooking. Tim's grandmother taught him how to cook wonderful food. She also taught him how to cook great meals without spending a lot of money. Tim's website tells how his grandmother influenced him most. It says,
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"She taught her grandson that the most important part of any meal is love."
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After high school, Tim trained to be become a chef. He then traveled internationally. He learned about food and cooking in other cultures. After these experiences, he returned to the United States and began working. Tim was very successful as a chef. And finally he became a chef at Bouchon. Working at this well-known restaurant was a dream made true.
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Tim enjoyed his work at Bouchon. But his work did not make him fully happy. After only two years, he recognized that Bouchon was not the place for him. He wanted more. He told the N P R news organization,
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"I was cooking for very wealthy people and people with many resources, and there is nothing wrong with that. But I just had a desire to serve people who did not have many resources."
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So, Tim left Bouchon. Instead, he became the lead chef at the Bay Area Rescue Mission. The Bay Area Rescue Mission serves poor and homeless people in the San Francisco Bay area. They provide food, shelter, clothes, drug recovery programs, job training programs and much more. The Rescue Mission is a Christian group, but it helps all people. Tim's new job was to prepare and cook meals for hundreds of hungry, poor and homeless people every day.
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For the past eight years, Tim has served as the Rescue Mission's lead chef. He greatly enjoys his work. However, there are difficulties. Tim has a very limited amount of money to buy food. So, Tim uses many of the things his grandmother taught him in the kitchen. Every day, he uses his skill, the Mission's limited food resources and a lot of LOVE to prepare the finest meals he can.
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Most days, Tim depends on food gifts from local markets, factories and restaurants. These gifts often come without warning. But Tim is thankful. Many times, he quickly changes the meal plans to use food gifts wisely. This is difficult, but it is necessary. At times, Tim is responsible to feed as many as twelve hundred [1200] people a day.
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Tim does not cook for all the people by himself. Many people help him. In fact, many of these helpers are people staying at the Rescue Mission.
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A large part of Tim's job is training other people to cook. Tim trains people in the Mission's drug recovery program. If a person completes the whole program, he receives a two year cooking degree. With these new skills, a person can get a good job.
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Training these individuals is important to Tim. To many of the students, Tim's program is a second chance - at life, at finding a new job and at supporting themselves. Tim believes this job training is very important. He told the New York Times,
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"Learning to make good decisions while cooking can equal making good decisions in life."
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Some people do not understand Tim's decision to leave Bouchon. They think he has wasted his skills and amazing food. They think that poor people in the Rescue Mission do not need his skills. However, as a Christian, Tim believes that it is very important to serve other people, even as a chef.
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There is a story in the Christian Bible about a King. The King separates his people into two groups. He tells one group of people that they will be greatly rewarded. He begins to explain to the people why they are receiving their reward. He says,
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"I was hungry and you gave me some food to eat. I needed to drink and you gave me some water. I was alone and you asked me to come to your home."
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However, the people did not understand the King. They did not remember ever feeding the King or giving him water or inviting him into their homes. The people spoke to the King. They asked him when they did these good things. The King answered,
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"What I say to you is true. You did all these things to help people. They were not important people, but they were my friends. If you helped them, then you also helped me."
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In this story, the King represents God. And the people are rewarded because they showed love and kindness. They cared for people in need. And in doing so, it was like they were serving God directly. For many Christians, this important idea is the reason why they serve other people.
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