Culinary School

By LISA GRAYBEAL Staff Writer, Chambersburg SCOTLAND, Pa. - A new culinary arts center at the Scotland School for Veterans' Children will bear the name of retired U.S. Gen. Colin L. Powell, who donated $1,000 to help develop it. The check was formally presented to the school along with a letter written by Powell in a ceremony Monday morning to kick off a $400,000 capital campaign called "Preparing for the Next 100 Years," to develop the...

katec@herald-mail.com "We're still over there," said Capt. Brian T. Beckno, commander, 1-187th Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division. Beckno fears that people already are starting to forget about U.S. efforts in the war against terrorism. Beckno has been back in the States since June. The "we" he talks about is other American soldiers. One of them, Daniel R. "Danny" Burger, 19, who grew up in Hagerstown, is "over there" in Afghanistan. Burger enlisted - in peacetime - for a four-year tour last August.

Chris Grossnickle opened Brickyard Grill in downtown Hagerstown in November of 2010, providing sandwiches and soups for downtown workers. The restaurant faces West Washington Street and, outside the west wall, on a brick-paved walkway bordered with English ivy and roses. Grossnickle, 34, of Hagerstown, is a local chef who trained and worked within an hour's drive of Hagerstown. He grew up just over South Mountain in Middletown, Md., attended culinary school in Gaithersburg, and worked for several high-end restaurants in western Frederick County.

By LISA GRAYBEAL Staff Writer Jon Reecher's idea of making dinner isn't punching holes in the plastic wrap of a store-bought frozen dinner and popping it in the microwave. It's more likely Reecher, a recent honors graduate of Le Cordon Bleu culinary school in Paris and London will spend hours in the kitchen creating a gastronomic delight from appetizer to dessert. "When I cook gourmet, it takes all day," said Reecher, 27, of Hagerstown. Soon he'll be putting his talents to use for a more critical audience than his wife, Christine, and immediate family and friends.

Hagerstown resident Dave Fox enjoyed running as a teenager li ving in the Midwest. But he got away from the sport, then developed an interest in it again after graduating from culinary school at James Rumsey Technical Institute near Hedgesville, W.Va. While working his first job after culinary school, Fox met a friend who competed in the JFK 50 Mile. “He just said, 'Hey, you want to do this 50-mile race?' I said, 'Sure.' I had never run an ultramarathon before,” said Fox, who completed the race in 11 hours and 19 minutes in his first attempt.

North Hagerstown High School's competitive culinary team has the skills that pays the tuition bills. Literally. North High beat 18 other schools from across state at the Maryland ProStart Student Invitational in Baltimore on March 1. As the first-place winners, the members of North's culinary team have earned their pick of scholarships from 12 schools and two businesses — from $1,000 from Johnson and Wales University to as much as...

Editor's note: This is part of an occasional series of profiles of local restaurant chefs. Chad Dorsey is executive chef and co-owner of Old South Mountain Inn at the top of South Mountain east of Boonsboro. He has worked here almost all his adult life, and maintained the reputation of top-quality American-style dishes passed to him by his predecessor. Dorsey, 40, said tradition is important at the inn. Customers favor the classic dishes of 20th-century American fine dining.

Editor's note: This is part of an occasional series of profiles of local restaurant chefs. Aqua 103, a high-end restaurant in the Lyle Building off Leitersburg Pike north of Hagerstown, has a relatively new executive chef. He trained at a prestigious culinary school in Pittsburgh and served as executive chef at a classy hotel restaurant in Ocean City, Md. But when the chef came to Aqua 103 seven months ago, he was no stranger to the area. Kris LeHardy grew up in Hagerstown.

Editor's note: This is part of an occasional series of profiles of local restaurant chefs. Chris Carp has been executive chef of Capital Camps & Retreat Center, a conference center and summer camp, for three years. Founded as a rustic retreat center for Jewish communities in Washington, D.C., and Baltimore, Capital Retreat Center caters to Jewish and non-Jewish groups from 10 to 500 or more. One unique aspect of the facility is that the kitchen is strictly kosher, with a religious-based separation of meat and dairy items.

HAGERSTOWN - For Erin O'Brien, there's something inspirational about a really good tiramisu. After she graduates in 2007, she wants to turn inspiration into a career. Working as a pastry chef is the only career that Erin, 17, has ever considered. "The creativity of it has always inspired me," she said. "There's so much you can do with it. " Erin said when she was younger, she always stayed in the kitchen while her mother cooked. She helped her mother bake cakes.

Hagerstown resident Dave Fox enjoyed running as a teenager li ving in the Midwest. But he got away from the sport, then developed an interest in it again after graduating from culinary school at James Rumsey Technical Institute near Hedgesville, W.Va. While working his first job after culinary school, Fox met a friend who competed in the JFK 50 Mile. “He just said, 'Hey, you want to do this 50-mile race?' I said, 'Sure.' I had never run an ultramarathon before,” said Fox, who completed the race in 11 hours and 19 minutes in his first attempt.

Chris Grossnickle opened Brickyard Grill in downtown Hagerstown in November of 2010, providing sandwiches and soups for downtown workers. The restaurant faces West Washington Street and, outside the west wall, on a brick-paved walkway bordered with English ivy and roses. Grossnickle, 34, of Hagerstown, is a local chef who trained and worked within an hour's drive of Hagerstown. He grew up just over South Mountain in Middletown, Md., attended culinary school in Gaithersburg, and worked for several high-end restaurants in western Frederick County.

Editor's note: This is part of an occasional series of profiles of local restaurant chefs. Chris Carp has been executive chef of Capital Camps & Retreat Center, a conference center and summer camp, for three years. Founded as a rustic retreat center for Jewish communities in Washington, D.C., and Baltimore, Capital Retreat Center caters to Jewish and non-Jewish groups from 10 to 500 or more. One unique aspect of the facility is that the kitchen is strictly kosher, with a religious-based separation of meat and dairy items.

Editor's note: This is part of an occasional series of profiles of local restaurant chefs. Chad Dorsey is executive chef and co-owner of Old South Mountain Inn at the top of South Mountain east of Boonsboro. He has worked here almost all his adult life, and maintained the reputation of top-quality American-style dishes passed to him by his predecessor. Dorsey, 40, said tradition is important at the inn. Customers favor the classic dishes of 20th-century American fine dining.

Editor's note: This is part of an occasional series of profiles of local restaurant chefs. Aqua 103, a high-end restaurant in the Lyle Building off Leitersburg Pike north of Hagerstown, has a relatively new executive chef. He trained at a prestigious culinary school in Pittsburgh and served as executive chef at a classy hotel restaurant in Ocean City, Md. But when the chef came to Aqua 103 seven months ago, he was no stranger to the area. Kris LeHardy grew up in Hagerstown.

North Hagerstown High School's competitive culinary team has the skills that pays the tuition bills. Literally. North High beat 18 other schools from across state at the Maryland ProStart Student Invitational in Baltimore on March 1. As the first-place winners, the members of North's culinary team have earned their pick of scholarships from 12 schools and two businesses — from $1,000 from Johnson and Wales University to as much as...

HAGERSTOWN - At the peak of her career, Jerrica Hargett might become famous for her tea cakes or fruit tarts. But it was her skill at putting together a meal that won her a spot in the 2008 Best Teen Chef championship. Hargett, 18, of Hagerstown, was one of 31 regional winners from the United States and Canada competing last month in Las Vegas. For the finals, each prepared stuffed pork bundles, sautéed peppers with olive oil and capers, and orechietti pasta with artichokes.

Packing pounds of icing and plenty of confidence, Courtney Adkins, 17, is ready for a cake decorating showdown. On Saturday, Courtney, a senior at Washington County Technical High School, will go to Baltimore, where she will face the best high school cake decorators in Maryland. Courtney recently won a regional cake decorating contest in Frederick, Md., for high school students. She and two others have advanced to the state competition in Baltimore. The contest was organized by SkillsUSA, a national group that represents students, teachers and other professionals involved with high school and college-level technical programs.

HAGERSTOWN - Nearly four years ago, when Eve Janni received that phone call that every parent dreads, she thought that she would never be able to get over the death of her only son, Michael "Gabe" Spurlock. She hasn't ... nor will she or her family. But Janni and Gabe's father, Michael E. Spurlock, bonded with other family members and friends to take a positive step after their tragedy - a culinary arts scholarship fund in Gabe's memory. Gabe died in an automobile accident in Delaware in September 2003.

HAGERSTOWN - For Erin O'Brien, there's something inspirational about a really good tiramisu. After she graduates in 2007, she wants to turn inspiration into a career. Working as a pastry chef is the only career that Erin, 17, has ever considered. "The creativity of it has always inspired me," she said. "There's so much you can do with it. " Erin said when she was younger, she always stayed in the kitchen while her mother cooked. She helped her mother bake cakes.