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Pomona College Magazine is published three times a year by Pomona College
550 N. College Ave, Claremont, CA 91711
Online Editor: Mark Kendall
For editorial matters:
Editor: Mark Wood
Phone: (909) 621-8158
Fax: (909) 621-8203
PCM Editorial Guidelines
Contact Alumni Records for changes of address, class notes, or notice
of births or deaths.
Phone: (909) 621-8635
Fax: (909) 621-8535
Email: alumni@pomona.edu
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Still Cooking
Q & A/ Alan Chatham '09
Watching Alan Chatham ’09 prepare a meal of chicken fajitas in Walker
Lounge, it's obvious this multitasker is no newcomer to the kitchen.
Chatham has two pots heating on the stove—one for rice, the other
warming a dish of corn and peppers—as well as a skillet grilling onions.
Various ingredients such as tortillas, canned tomatoes and seasonings
are spread across two counters. While the rice and vegetables heat up,
Chatham wields a large knife to slice a whole chicken into strips on a
cutting board. He deftly moves back and forth between the stove and the
counter, managing four operations at once. The situation might feel
chaotic to a less experienced cook, but Chatham remains calm and
assured. Even when the onions burn, Chatham quickly dumps them and
starts chopping a new onion, saying it’s “not a big deal.” Although
Chatham, 21, from Spokane, Wash., has something of an easygoing approach
to cooking, he honed his culinary skills in an environment not known for
being very relaxed. Before enrolling at Pomona, Chatham served in the
U.S. Army for two years. He worked as a 92 Golf—food service
specialist—“a fancy name for a cook,” he says—for the replacement unit
at Fort Lewis, located in Washington State.
 Why did you join the Army?
“My dad thought that his time in the Army was such an important
experience in his life that he encouraged us to go into the service. My
two brothers served two-year stints in thearmed services. My older brother, Gene, served in the Coast Guard and
now goes to the University of Washington. My twin brother, Jim, worked
on an Army base in Korea and is
now a student at Lewis and Clark College.”
What made you want to be a cook?
“I thought that food service would be a job that would keep me indoors,
had regular hours and didn’t involve as much travel. Plus, I thought the
all-white uniform looked kind of snazzy. I guess I was naďve. The hours
were really hard. I did not expect as a cook to be working the 10- to
12-hour days that I did.”
Did you enjoy life in the Army?
“It taught me how to cook, of course, and I’m much more independent than
I would have been. The amount I’ve grown up and matured is so great that
I can’t really compare
it to what I was like before. Being in the Army also taught me a lot
about patience, since the culture there is one of ‘hurry up and wait.’”
What brought you to Pomona College?
“I did plan on going to college. I never did college visits myself,
since I was busy working. But my neighbors from back home were very
involved in my friend Whitney’s college search, and had it not been for
her asthma, she probably would have gone to a Claremont college. So I
applied to Pomona and CMC, as well as a few others not in the area, but
Pomona gave me the financial aid I needed.”
How often do you cook on campus?
“I try and cook about once a week, although taking five classes and
working 10 hours a week has meant that I’ve actually been able to cook
only about once every other week. However, I cooked a big Thanksgiving
dinner this year along with Residential Life again. I was here the year
before on Thanksgiving and wound up cooking a huge turkey dinner for
about 20 people who were also around, and it was just a really
remarkable time, getting to connect with so many people who would have
otherwise had nowhere to go for Thanksgiving. In part, I think this
reflects my desire to cook in general. I figure that it’s something that
I can do well to bring happiness into the lives of others.”
Do you have a specialty?
“Chocolate truffles. Sgt. Jason Buscovich, my supervisor at Fort Lewis
and a former professional baker, taught me how to make them. I’ve sold
them to raise money for charities
and given them as birthday gifts.” In his time at Pomona, Chatham has
noticed many
differences between life at a residential college and at Fort Lewis.
“The culture here is more laidback than in the Army, obviously. I’m
learning that people aren’t necessarily as concerned with punctuality on
a college campus as they are on a military base.” However, Chatham also
sees similarities between the two groups. “Even though people in the
Army and students
at Pomona usually come from different types of backgrounds and have
different experiences, I think their priorities are similar.” He thinks
that this has a lot to do with the fact that the students he meets are
generally the same age as most of the soldiers he knew. "Both groups
have certain things that they want to accomplish, but they also like to
have fun.”
—David Newman ’06 |
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