Photo By Senior Airman Amelio Brown | 22nd Force Support Squadron dining facility Airmen prepare dough for a pasta recipe at...... read more read more
Subscribe
MCCONNELL AIR FORCE BASE, Kan. – The 22nd Force Support Squadron’s dining facility team partnered with Redler Institute of Culinary Arts, April 28, 2026, continuing an ongoing relationship that seeks to develop the culinary skills of the DFAC Airmen who serve us.
The institute, located in Andover, Kansas, offers hands-on training in a professional learning environment helping to develop the industry expertise and experience needed for careers in restaurants, catering, food service management and food truck entrepreneurship.
Thirteen DFAC Airmen participated in the workshop where they received live demonstrations, as well as hands on instructions from Redler Institute’s head instructor Chef Ethan Moulds. They learned to make pasta from scratch and a lemon bar dessert.
The Airmen also received some advice and insight from 30-year culinary arts veteran and director of Redler Institute, Les Padzensky.
“These culinary airmen don't always realize that they touch most every person on the base at some point every day. Their hospitality, their food, the time and effort they put into making that person's meal can make the difference for an Airman who might be having a bad day and turning it into a good day for them”, said Les. “Culinary people have the opportunity to change the lives of people every day. They just need to realize it. Food, hospitality, and family blended together can make a good day or bad day better!”
Staff Sgt. Myra Jiminez, 22nd Force Support Squadron food service supervisor, believes the lessons learned from this collaboration also extend into general Airman readiness.
“I think learning how to make food from scratch can benefit anybody, especially in a deployed environment,” said Jiminez. “If you deploy somewhere and your resources are limited, learning these fundamental skills can help give you the tools to provide quality food to your people which can boost morale in those environments."
This is the second year that this collaboration has come to fruition. Both McConnell and Redler intend to continue this partnership in order to maintain the relationship between the base and its local community. “These airmen need to know that where they are stationed now is a strong supportive community for them and McConnell in general”, said Les. “We did the same event last year and will work on doing it again during our upcoming school year. I have come to learn that McConnell is a living organism that changes day by day, but I feel confident that we will find a date that works again next school year for a new set of culinary Airmen.”
Partnerships with the local community continue to be a staple for what makes McConnell a unique base in terms of its relation to its surrounding counterparts. The effort put into these programs are important drivers not only for the local economy, but for the overall wellbeing of the Airmen who live and serve here in Wichita.
| Date Taken: | 05.05.2026 |
| Date Posted: | 05.05.2026 16:03 |
| Story ID: | 564430 |
| Location: | MCCONNELL AIR FORCE BASE, KANSAS, US |
| Web Views: | 14 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Delectable lessons: McConnell dabbles in the culinary arts, by SrA Amelio Brown, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
