Moraine Park students embrace community involvement

Moraine Park students are expanding their learning opportunities beyond the classroom by getting involved with the community. I was amazed to find that Moraine Park has almost 30 clubs and organizations for students to get involved in! The Culinary Arts Club is a perfect example, with their recent involvement in Fondue Fest, held Saturday, Sept. 10. Moraine Park culinary arts students and instructors prepared and dished out 120 pounds of cheese and 80 pounds of chocolate for downtown Fond du Lac’s annual Fondue Fest event.

Fondue Fest was an excellent opportunity for culinary arts students to interact with the downtown Fond du Lac community. Festival goers had a good time getting to know a few Moraine Park students and learning more about preparing (and eating!) fondue.  I thought it was great to see our students in action, applying what they are learning in the classroom to a larger community event. And I also enjoyed sampling the cheese and chocolate fondue, of course!

Culinary Arts students continue their involvement with the downtown Fond du Lac community by selling baked goods at the Farmers Market, held every Wednesday from 2-6 p.m. until October. They have been selling their culinary creations since early June, sharing their talents with the community.

Our Culinary students aren’t the only ones working with the community. On Sept. 27, the Beaver Dam campus will host a blood drive in conjunction with the Blood Center of Wisconsin. Moraine Park’s own Brianna Rhodes, Medical Assistant student and Dodge County’s Fairest of the Fair, will be there volunteering and giving blood. Appointments can be made online at www.bcw.edu/MPTCBD.

Remembering Sept. 11

As we start the fourth week to the fall academic term, I find myself reflecting on the many events held this past weekend in memory of Sept. 11.  Reading the stories that changed each of us in some way, there is a common theme that encouraged and allowed those who lost family, friends and loved ones to continue on.  That common theme was resilience and the ability to move forward.

Whatever change or changes have been part of your life, your decision to attend MPTC was an important step in allowing you to move forward.  The lessons we learn on a daily basis can and will make each of us a better person.

Do you remember where you were ten years ago on Sept. 11?