Student's class offers fresh start

EAST COUNTY — Bryan Jacobs remembers what life was like after returning from a tour in the military.

The 35-year-old was a battlefield paramedic in the U.S. Marine Corps for four years, as was his brother.
When his service ended, he and his brother couldn’t keep jobs. Both became homeless.

After Jacobs discovered his passion for cooking, his life became his own again, he said. But his brother couldn’t adapt to life outside of the military.

He died earlier this year.

In the wake of his brother’s death, Jacobs focused on creating a program to help reintroduce veterans to life off the battlefield.

Through the Vets 2 Chefs program the University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee student launched last week, veterans who live in temporary housing provided by Jewish Family & Children’s Services are trading military garb for white chef coats.

Jacobs hosted a crash course on kitchen best practices Dec. 8 through Dec. 12, at USF’s College of Hospitality and Technology Leadership’s Culinary Innovation Lab on Lakewood Main Street. The group learned how to properly wash produce and use an array of knives. They also learned to prepare meals from recipes.

“I’ve wanted to do something to help other veterans for a while, but it became more important to me after my brother died,” Jacobs said. “ Veterans need more than ‘three hots and a cot.’ They need a mentor.”

Five middle-aged veterans who served in the U.S. Marine Corps and U.S. Army learned how to make salads, soups and other foods throughout the cooking academy for beginners hosted by Jacobs’ and USF culinary lab assistant and French intern Juliette Ravinale.

“We’re basically getting veterans involved with hands-on training for the culinary workforce,” Jacobs said. “Why should student vets owe student loans when they’ve fought for this country? That doesn’t make sense. This training will help them get jobs and learn these skills, debt-free.”

The veterans toured Sweetgrass Farms Dec. 10 in Sarasota. For most of the group, the setting was a new one.

“I’ve never been on a farm before,” Jennifer Capwell said to Sweetgrass Farms owner Jim Demler, smiling. “This is so interesting.”

Jacobs smiled as he watched his “students” ask Demler about the arugula, basil, mint and other crops growing on the farm. The veterans intently took notes on their notepads for tips they would use when crafting their fresh salads later in the afternoon.

The program spans eight weeks, over which veterans learn more than kitchen basics.

The participants will continue to meet with Jacobs Thursdays at the culinary lab to discuss creating resumes, professional etiquette for job interviews and other tools that will help the group secure employment at local restaurants.

Jacobs and Ravinale hope the program will help the participants discover more about themselves while also securing a job they enjoy.

Ravinale uses questionnaires to ask the veterans questions to gauge their personality types and determine which job they would be best suited for in a restaurant.

“Veterans need jobs that fit them as people, not just jobs that match their skill sets,” Ravinale said. “I want to know who they are as people so they can become successful.”

Moving forward, Jacobs hopes to continuously have classes of veterans train at the Main Street culinary lab. He plans to have veterans who have completed the course mentor incoming participants.
Jacobs wants veterans to continue helping veterans.

“This project can be my and the community’s way to give back to those who have given for us,” Jacobs said.

BACK ON TRACK
Jennifer Capwell never wanted to leave the Marine Corps.

But when she injured her shoulder and knee, she didn’t have a choice.

When she left the military in 1998, everyday life “didn’t feel right anymore,” Capwell said. She struggled to get back into a daily routine and couldn’t secure jobs that led to careers.

She held machinist, cleaning and other temporary positions that never materialized into careers.

“It was an endless cycle, an endless, jobless, homeless cycle,” Capwell said.

Over the years, she also gave birth to four children.

She was homeless for a year and lived on neighbors’ couches. A friend in Tennessee let her children take turns, two at a time, sleeping and showering inside of the home.

The family also spent nights in Capwell’s car.

With family members in Florida and hopes of better employment opportunities for her children, she moved from Tennessee to Florida two months ago.

Last week, she received the keys from Jewish Family & Children’s Services to her temporary dwelling and started the Vets 2 Chefs program at the Culinary Innovation Lab on Lakewood Ranch Main Street.

“This is more than help finding a job,” Capwell said. “I didn’t know myself or what I was good at before, because I was so focused on just getting by and putting food on the table for my kids. It’s taken a while, but I’m getting my life back.”

Contact Amanda Sebastiano at [email protected].