Schools
BOCES Buffet Raises Funds For Adult Ed Services
The fundraiser buffet featured dishes from international students
When Rockland County Clerk Paul Piperato runs naturalization ceremonies—where he administers the Oath of Allegiance to new citizens—he reminds those in attendance of two things.
The first is to thank the veterans, who are involved with the ceremony. The second is never forget where you came from.
“Bring all your traditions from your country here,” he said. “Bring them here, live them. Blend them in with our American culture. This is what makes the American melting pot rich with tradition. We never want to discourage them to forget their homeland.”
Piperato spoke about the ceremonies Wednesday night at the Rockland BOCES Culinary event, which raised money for scholarships for the Adult Education English as a Second Language program.
“One of the parts of my job I’m most proud of is I have the honor to administer the oath of allegiance to our new citizens in Rockland County,” Piperato said. “It’s a privilege that I don’t take lightly.”
Piperato was the guest of honor at the event, but the main focus of the night was the buffet. The buffet was made from recipes submitted by BOCES ESL students from their respective homelands. Al Moschetti, supervisor of the BOCES Adult Education program, said about 20 recipes were submitted to the contest, and five winners were picked by a group of chefs.
“This is something we’re planning on doing every year from now on,” he said. “For the first one, I think it went great.”
Rolando Martinez submitted one of the winning dishes. He was pollo borracho, or drunken chicken, from his native El Salvador.
“I first made the dish about six months ago,” he said. “I used it for the contest because I make it for my family and they love it.”
Martinez has been studying English with BOCES for about six months, he added.
The other winners in the contest were:
- Matanat Imanova, of Azerbaijan, for stuffed grape leaves and red lentil soup
- Carmelle Mehu Milien, of Haiti, for black rice shrimp
- Dunie Ferdinand, of Haiti, for pork tidbits grio
- Regina Rivas, of Dominican Republic, for spiced grapefruit peel
“Everybody did a great job,” Martinez said. “They all tasted great.”
The dishes were prepared by Kendall Brenner, a Rockland BOCES culinary arts instructor, and some of his students. The event was sponsored by the Rockland Welcome Committee and Nanuet Lions Club. Moschetti said the two groups came to BOCES with the idea for the event last spring.
The event also featured a performance from the Chiku Awali African Dance, Arts & Culture, Inc. of Rockland, located in Suffern. Ayal Lindeman also spoke about his time in the BOCES nursing program and then going to Haiti after the 2010 earthquake to help the relief efforts.
