Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 21, Number 12, 1 Kekemapa 2004 — From lunch wagon to executive chef [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

From lunch wagon to executive chef

From rough-and-tumble beginnings at Mayor Wright Housing, Stafford DeCambra has made his mark as a top chef at an exclusive Mississippi resort By Keaumiki Akui Growing up in one of Kalihi's notorious housing projects during the 1950s and '60s was like combat duty. As an alumnus of Mayor Wright Housing, I ean attest to that. Despite the challenges we faced, however, quite a few of my fellow housing residents have gone on to make quite a name for themselves. There's Edward "Skippa" Diaz, for example, who heeame a successful football eoaeh at Farrington High School and is currently the deputy director of Parks and Recreation for the City and County of Honolulu. Don "Snookie" Snyder played and coached basketball in Europe and currently serves as Maui High School's athletic director. John Kamae, a swimming star at McKinley High School, heeame vice principal of a middle school in Orange County, California. All three of these men are examples of how sports inspired loeal boys to excellence. Another loeal boy who has done well since his days at Mayor Wright is Stafford T. DeCambra, Farrington High School class of 1974. Certainly, cooking was not an aspiration in the youthful maeho days of Mayor Wright, but Stafford just

happens to be one of the top chefs in the U.S., having won gold medals in both individual and team culinary competitions. He is currently the executive chef for Pearl River Resort in Choctaw, Mississippi, where he oversees 14 different food operations and a $40 million annual budget. Pearl Resort boasts two ultra-modern hotels and casinos, more than a thousand rooms, a ehampionship golf course, the

world's first Hard Rock Beach Club and the largest water theme park in the South. Not bad for a kid from Kalihi who began his culinary rise by helping his grandparents at their Sandy Beach luneh wagon. Stafford first studied food service in his high school home economics class, where he excelled. "He always joked about it, saying that's the only subject he got A's in." recalls his daughter Chessa, who works in OHA's Health, Human service, Housing and Education division. While still in high school, Stafford worked as a bus boy at one of the hot spots of the time, Waikīkī Beef 'n' Grog. As serendipity would have it, a key kitchen employee called in sick one day and Stafford was literally thrown in to replace him. The executive chef was impressed with Stafford's performance. With his confidence reinforced, Stafford's focus heeame clear. After graduating from Farrington, Stafford enrolled in the Culinary

Institute of America in New York and soon realized how broad the culinary field was worldwide. His new profession took him to positions in New Jersey, Florida and Texas before landing the post of senior chef for the American Classic Voyages cruise line in Hawai'i, a stint that lasted 10 years. Following the 9/11 attacks, Stafford found himself on the heaeh and out of work. Undaunted, he brushed off the sand and submitted his resume online to casinocareers.com. It was not long before he received

a eall from the Pearl River Resort. What is it like for a loeal boy to live in the South? "I like the relaxed lifestyle here," Stafford says, "and I get to go home onee a year - to see my siblings and my children. That's very important." Both Chessa and Stafford's other daughter, Tanya, are students at the University of Hawai'i. In 2002, Stafford heeame a Certified American Culinary Federation Approved Judge, and he has taught college culinary classes in Hawai'i and Mississippi. Today, he serves not just food but also inspiration and motivation for the next generation of chefs. Keaumiki Akui is the puhlie affairs specialist with OHA's governance division. If you are a Hawaiian on the continent with an interesting story to tell, or ifyou know of one, please contact OHA Outreach Coordinator Aulani Apoliona at 594-1912, or via e-mail at aulania@oha.org. M

On a visit home, Stafford DeCambra hits the beach with daughters Tanya and Chessa, who works in OHA's HumanServices division. Photo: DeCambra family