On a sunny Friday afternoon, he can take a few hours off or do whatever it takes to promote his business.
Instead, a smiling, pleasant Kamal Philibert recently unloaded food items he brought to the prep table in the kitchen of the Dorcas Outreach Center for Kids — The DOCK — in Melbourne’s Booker T. Washington neighborhood.
The spaghetti went into a pot to boil, I chopped the lettuce into a large bowl. When he saw a roasting pan that wasn’t cleaned to his liking, Philibert cheerfully washed, rinsed and dried it before adding boneless ribs. Out came the BBQ sauce and spices.
“Fifty kids are going to eat here,” he said. “But before they do, they will learn how to choose food and prepare it, easy meals that they can prepare at home… Here we will learn the basic steps of cooking and we emphasize nutrition.”
This he will do once a month as part of the Neighbor Up Brevard program at DOCK. In his 20sth year of service, DOCK provides a safe environment where education is emphasized for children in his neighborhood, after school and during summer vacations.
Ninety-seven percent of these children live in low-income households; 74%, in households headed by single mothers.
It was a spectacular success, with 39 volunteers helping with homework, lessons, recreational activities and other projects for about 48 children a day.
Since 2004, no child actively involved in The DOCK has dropped out, and the walls of its lobby are decorated with the flags of universities its alumni have gone to: Colgate, Virginia Commonwealth, Georgia Southern, almost all in the state of Florida.
LaShaundra McGhee, a longtime nonprofit and community activist who became executive director of Neighbor Up on April 1, talked about cooking as just as important as fitness, arts, dance, technology and other programs at The DOCK.
“We all eat and everyone is interested in food,” she said. “What they learn here, they will take home.”
Now they have just the man to get them there.
Food, family and children’s future
Philibert, a native of Jamaica, has also been involved in the community for years, having cooked for events, parties, funerals and functions. Having previously operated Philibert Kitchen as a catering service, he opened a takeout restaurant four years ago, in a Shell station at 3676 N. Wickham Road, Melbourne.
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He worked with food trucks and was a contestant on a TV show hosted by Gordon Ramsay. He has cooked for the CITA Mission in Melbourne and Helen’s House, and once a month he travels to Orlando to feed around 300 homeless people.
When asked about his inspiration, the ubiquitous smile grows: it comes from his mother, Sandra, who helps him cook the food of her home country, and it’s therapy for her as she recovers from breast cancer. So it’s no surprise that he also supports charities dedicated to fighting cancer.
A lot can be done when your passion is food.
“I started cooking at a young age,” said Philibert, who remains at a young age. “My parents owned a Jamaican restaurant and I went to East Florida State College to become a chef, majoring in Caribbean cuisine. But I had to branch out to be able to provide food for all kinds of different people, different cultures.”
He found out about Neighbor Up Brevard and The DOCK from clients whose children participate in or have been affected by the program and who referred him to The DOCK management.
“They reached out to me,” he said. “I used to cook in the county but I never knew about it and after I heard what (it was about) I made the decision to come here. I thought, “Yes, I should partner with the DOCK program. I think this is a place where I can really help.”
The program is free and Philibert takes donations from the Cash App; pantries and customers help provide food.
His first meal was going to be a little bit of everything: salad, vegetables, pasta, sauces and condiments, all laid out like a buffet, and he had just taken out the ribs when two more cheerful people bounced into the kitchen, 11-year-old Sania Pino and 9- year old Trinity Johnson. They were duly impressed by a busy young man in a chef’s jacket and apron.
“You really are Jamaican,” Sanya said after hearing the cook speak. “Will you cook Jamaican food?”
Philibert got them to work right away, explaining how to apply seasoning to the ribs doing this and then having them put their gloves and hands into the meat for a hands-on lesson.
“Have you guys ever seasoned meat?” he asked.
“No, I never have,” Sanyah replied. “But I like learning to cook. I made muffins once.
“Cold!” Trinity exclaimed as she rolled the meat in the fragrant powder.
Philibert explained why it should be so, and then asked what they could tell him about seasoning meat. They echoed his words about adding flavor with gusto and that what’s good for you can also taste good to you.
Sanya and Trinity only took their eyes off him to study the food he and they had prepared, and as he arranged a salad in her bowl, an onlooker could see the wheels turning; it was also something to remember taken home.
It will be repeated five times, with 10 children, none over 17, in each session.
“We taught them the basics of cooking, the things to look for in spoiled meat; basic seasoning of salt and pepper and how to portion it. They learned the cooking times and temperatures for each meat we focused on: ribs, beef, and chicken. Then they enjoyed the delicious food we prepared,” Philibert said.
He will come back.
“We’re forming a partnership to host the classes once a month,” he said. “This is to keep kids engaged and continue to teach them about the importance of healthy and wholesome nutrition. We also encourage the surrounding community to join in.”
Let a child have the last words.
“This is going to be fun,” Trinity said. “This is going to be fun.”
Lynn Dowling is a freelance food and lifestyle writer based in Melbourne.
The DOCK at Neighbor Up Brevard, 1151 Masterson St., Melbourne, needs a dance instructor, donations for its technology program, a van to transport children to off-site programs and volunteers. Call 321-253-4214.
