Cooking up something good

Debbie "D.C." Chun has no kids of her own, except for the 57 students she cooks for at the Hawaii Center for the Deaf and the Blind

Debbie "D.C." Chun Title: School cafeteria chef Job: Prepares meals for the students at the Hawaii Center for the Deaf and the Blind

Debbie "D.C." Chun has been working full time for almost 18 years as a cook at the Hawaii Center for the Deaf and Blind, on the Kapahulu side of Kapiolani Park. But that's not all. The energetic Chun also works part time both as a barista at the Starbucks in Kahala Mall and as a Hello Kitty merchandiser at the Navy Exchange.

Chun says she added the barista job to her schedule -- back when the Kahala outlet was the only Starbucks in town -- because she had a car she needed to pay off, "and that (working at Starbucks) has been going on 12 years now." Starbucks is also where she got the nickname "D.C."

The Navy Exchange job came along about five years ago, she said. "So I cook food in the daytime, pump coffee at night, and also play with Hello Kitty at night."

And when does she find time for herself at home?

"Usually after 11 o'clock at night, until about 4 in the morning. I'm just a sleep-in boarder," she joked.

Chun, who is "rounding 50," is a graduate of Castle High School as well as Honolulu Business College, from which she earned a degree in bartending.

"Back in the '70s, we were doing really good as bartenders," Chun said. "The tourism industry was great here, and I was working for Windjammer Cruises, and, boy, I tell you, the tips were really nice."

Chun these days might not be getting any cash tips at the Hawaii Center for the Deaf and the Blind, but she has found working there rewarding in other ways -- especially in terms of getting to know the students.

Chun is single and lives in Kaneohe. And, yes, she finally paid off her car.

Mark Coleman: As the cafeteria cook at the Hawaii Center for the Deaf and Blind, what are your basic job responsibilities?

Debbie "D.C." Chun: To provide the students with healthy food -- give them the basics -- and to pass federal standards and nutrition values. It also includes serving breakfast, lunch and also dinner.

Q: There are still people to feed there at dinner time?

A: Yes. Actually our school is a boarding school. So we have students from the outer islands.

Q: Are there a lot of students that attend the school?

A: Actually we have only about 57 students, I think. But it probably will start rising as school goes along. They find other kids that want to integrate into the school.

Q: How long have you been working for the Hawaii Center for the Deaf and Blind?

A: Hooo, let's see -- going on 18 years in November. I'm getting old. (Laughter) It's funny because the kids that were here in preschool, they graduated last year. One generation has already gone, and I'm still here.

Q: What's it like working at a school with a student body that is mostly deaf or blind?

A: You know, it was strange. When I first came in, I didn't know how to sign, but gradually I learned from the kids and I took classes, and they all become my children. I don't have children of my own. I have 57 kids. (Laughter)

Q: So you learned sign language for the deaf?

A: Yes. It's continuing. I'm always learning more things to add to my vocabulary.

Q: Getting back to the cooking, how did you get this job?

A: Well, you know, I had millions of jobs. When I first looked into it -- working for the state -- back in the '80s, they said it was good to work for the state; the pay is good, benefits are excellent. So I decided I would work in the cafeteria. But when I got here, I found out there was more to it. So I started school at KCC (Kapiolani Community College), and there I picked up more techniques on cooking, and integrated it here. Then I learned that I really love dealing with the deaf, because it's a different challenge.

Q: How did you learn to cook for so many people at once? At KCC?

A: Yeah, at KCC they teach you a hotel-type of cooking, so it's always in big bulk. I've been doing it for so long, I forget how to cook for two. (Laughter) So when I cook at home, it's like, "I can eat that for at least a week."

Q: What kinds of meals do you prepare?

A: A lot of it, as far as lunch and breakfast, is pretty much standard -- what you would get in public schools.

Q: What would that be?

A: Anything from waffles to fried rice for breakfast, and then for lunch, oh, we have hot dogs, and chili and rice, like we had today, and beef stew; that's one of the favorites. And kalua pig,; that's another one of the favorites. The kids here love it.

Then for dinner, we try to make more local, home-kind of cooking. We'll have things like pork chops. On special days we'll have things like steak --that's a rarity -- with potatoes, the whole fixings.

Q: Do you follow actual recipes?

A: Yes we do. We have standardized recipes that were incorporated by the state system, and we use that for our everyday cooking. As a matter of fact, we're working with a nutritionist right now to break down all the nutritional values of the recipes. It's getting a little bit technical.

Q: What seems to be the most popular meal that you make?

A: Oh, my goodness. For the kids, nachos, hot dogs, pizza -- which we do from scratch, by the way --the crust and everything.

Q: What meal do you like to prepare the most?

A: Oh my goodness. I guess roast turkey and gravy, with stuffing and garlic mash potatoes.

Q: And what about drinks? Do you arrange those, too?

A: Drinks, we offer milk for them, with every meal. We offer right now the 2 percent milk, and also chocolate milk. Then, of course, water, for people who want water. It's pretty basic.

Q: Got any vegetarians to deal with?

A: Yes I do. We have teachers that are vegetarians, and we do offer a salad bar, so they can purchase the salad bar and help themselves.

Q: But none of the students are vegetarians?

A: No, not right now. I think I had one about, oh gosh, about seven years ago, but that was about the last.

Q: How many people are you cooking for each day?

A: We get anywhere between 85, 90. Close to that.

Q: Do you have to wash the dishes, too?

A: Oh yeah. We do everything.

Q: How many other people do you work with?

A: There's only three of us in the cafeteria: my boss (Pauline Yee Hoy), who doubles up as a baker, and we have a fruits-and-vegetables lady (Lolita Medrano), who does that and also prep work.

Q: Do you ever have to work on the weekends at the school?

A: Well it depends if there's a special thing going on, like special events, then we do overtime. Otherwise, that's about it. We used to do more, but now the kids go home on weekends.

Q: Even the boarding students?

A: Yeah, it's the boarding students that leave on Friday. They fly out, and then fly back in on Sunday.

Q: What's your favorite part of working at the center?

A: I think just the interaction with the kids. You learn something every single day. It doesn't matter if you're deaf, blind, retarded -- you still can learn something from them.

I usually find out life-meaning stories from them, because every now and then you kind of take your own life for granted, and they have such special lives; they teach you stuff. But in order to learn, you really have to play close attention and digest it.