Craig Gerwick - professional chef and caterer

When you’re a 12-year-old boy whose parents work full-time, and you come home hungry after a sports regimen, raiding the fridge is to be expected. Craig Gerwick took that scenario a bit further though.

“I was on the swim team, and I ‘d be starving,” Craig said. “So I started cooking out of necessity.” Eventually, that experience led to a career as a professional chef.

Craig Gerwick at a banquet

As a youth, Craig learned how to read recipes and experiment with spices. “Curry, fennel, anise seed, caraway, they all have their own taste,” he said. He also learned that adding just a little more cayenne wasn’t always a good idea. Under the tutelage of his mom, Clara Gerwick, Craig’s knowledge of cooking continued to grow and improve.

He got a job at what was then Nall Hills Country Club as a dishwasher when he was 12, and a couple of years later became a waiter. At age 15, he was working two jobs, cooking at both the country club and a nursing home. Though he was still a student at Shawnee Mission South High School, Craig got out at noon on a work release, enabling him to work both places.

After high school, Craig attended the new hospitality management program at Johnson County Community College. While there, he learned a good deal more about cooking, as well as gaining the valuable experience of how to manage a staff and run a kitchen.

One of Craig's appetizers

He completed that program, and then elected to be trained at the California Culinary Academy in San Francisco. “It was hands-on cooking the day I got there,” Craig said. He learned how to be a Garde Manger chef, which is considered by many to be the most demanding station/job in any kitchen. It involves learning how to season both hot and cold food, being aware of sanitation, plate presentation, buffet decorating, becoming skilled in ice carvings, and basically how to put different kinds of food together in the tastiest and freshest ways.

The training also included working a cruise line for three months at a time. “You work 10 hours a day, cooking for 2,000 every shift,” Craig said. “I was only off ship for two hours a day.” Craig said that getting used to the movement of a ship took some practice, and that the first storm was especially challenging. He described a time when he was carrying a pot of stock and vegetables that weighed 50 to 60 pounds, when a swell came, causing him to lose his footing. The pot landed squarely on his chest, a painful experience, but thankfully not as bad as it could have been if the stock had been heated.

Craig Gerwick busy cooking

Craig said that in his class of 150, only 18 graduated. “You know the show ‘Hell’s Kitchen?’ ” Craig said. “Multiply Gordon Ramsey by eight chefs doing that all day. They try to belittle you but at the same time teach you.” It took quite a bit of stamina to put up with that day after day.

After Craig graduated from the culinary institute, he found it necessary to get what he called a “working chef license” from the American Culinary Federation. Finally, he was ready for a career. He worked four years for a hotel chain, 16-hour days, managing a staff of 12, cooking for as many as 5,000 people for conventions, receptions and the like.  He followed this with a five-year stint at an upscale senior living facility that was then at 119^th and Lamar in Overland Park. “They were looking for good quality food,” Craig said, rather than the bland stuff you might imagine. Next, he consulted with his family’s health care organization, C&L Gerwick Associates, helping with menus, purchasing and more.

It was during this time that he met his wife, Brenda. “She was selling quality pork,” Craig said, which meant he saw her regularly because their jobs intersected. Since Brenda lived in Des Moines, Iowa, they dated long distance for a couple of years before marrying in 1999.

Brenda Gerwick

In 2008, Craig started a catering company with a partner, but bought him out a couple of years later. The name of his company is Culinary Crossroads, www.culinarycrossroads.co/. It provides appetizers, salads, breakfast and dinner buffets, boxed lunches and desserts. Perhaps you’ve had some of Craig’s chicken tortilla soup, or potato soup, or beef vegetable soup at a Holy Cross Lenten supper.

Craig was also familiar with barbecued and smoked meats, having competed in the Great Lenexa BBQ Battle from 1990 to 2005. Eventually, he branched out with his own company, Orchard Pit BBQ, which offers a variety of smoked meats and gift boxes.

Orchard Pit BBQ meat presentation

The best praise Craig receives is the raves from satisfied customers. “I like to see people going wild,” he said. “I did a wedding for 262 people. The food is always fresh. There’s always plenty of food. The vegetables are green and vibrant; the brisket is tender, smoked.”

Looking ahead, Craig hopes to expand from operating on-line into opening his own storefront catering company and butcher shop. He envisions a place where people could come in and buy meat, and he could offer recipes and tips on how best to serve it.

Craig Gerwick

He has some advice for anyone seeking to follow the same path. “I wish I would have started it earlier,” Craig said, “because it takes a toll on knees and wrists.” He also says that you should never walk around with a knife in your hand, but if you do, make sure it’s sharp, because a cut from a dull knife takes a lot longer to heal.

Melissa Marienau - coaching good health

Melissa Marienau started on a path that would lead to a career in dancing. But the reality of what that sort of life was like changed her mind quickly.

“I grew up dancing,” Melissa said. “I was dancing 37 hours a week by age 17.” She wasn't the product of a stage mother or anything like that. She was simply driven by her love of dancing. Jazz, tap, ballet – she loved it all.

Melissa Marienau

After high school, Melissa moved to Los Angeles. Her goal was to be part of the dance world. She traveled weekends for dance conventions, teaching and demonstrating a variety of dance styles. But within a year, she was questioning her decision.

“The dance industry just didn't feel right,” Melissa said. “It was a gut feeling. I was thinking, do I want to be with this group of people for my whole life? Choreographers don’t really get married and have kids. And I didn't want my entire life to be about one thing.”

Melissa made the decision to move to Lawrence and attend the University of Kansas. When she arrived, she said, she had no idea what she wanted to do with herself. She talked with a counselor, who steered her toward journalism, and she started finding a focus.

She was still sports minded. Besides dancing since she was a toddler, Melissa had run track in high school, and swam a lot in her youth. But she didn't necessarily understand how to take care of her body, how to eat properly, how to have a well-rounded physical routine.

Logan & Melissa Marienau

Right after her freshman year, Melissa decided to work as a lifeguard. At her first internal employee meeting, she met Logan Marienau. “He’s the one who kind of introduced me to lifting weights,” she said. “He got me back into running. He taught me how to be more healthy. I started strength training more, running more, swimming more, living a healthy life style.”

Melissa graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Strategic Communications, a field that taught her about technology, how to keep up with the changing future, and social media. She and Logan dated four years before getting married in 2012. After moving to Kansas City, Melissa started coaching at the Jewish Community Center. In one of the JCC flyers, she saw information about triathlons, and signed up for the class.

“I was the joke of the class,” she said. “I had this old bike, handed down from my brother. I didn't know what a wind trainer was.” Fortunately, her mother-in-law, who was a triathlete, drove up from Lawrence to give Melissa her wind trainer. The class lasted for 10 or 12 weeks, Melissa said. She spent hours bike riding indoors with the wind trainer, and alternated that with swimming and running.

Melissa - competing in the
Meshugge New Year's Challenge

It was through triathlons, Melissa said, that she realized many athletes had no body awareness, didn't take time to stretch, and were unable to know what their body was feeling. So she decided to use her dance background, as well as what she had learned in college about communicating and technology, and put it to use.

“I took my whole background and turned it into a way to help athletes,” she said. Melissa spent several months searching for companies that could help her find a way to do that, then went through an eight-month process to become certified as a Yoga Sports Coach. She works part time with a travel agency, but spends most of her time building up her new business, MVMNT for Athletes, LLC.

Though she and Logan lived nearby, they had never visited Holy Cross Lutheran Church. She had grown up in a non-denominational Bible church, and Logan was more of a traditional Lutheran. Or as Melissa explained it, “He went to church where they had all these specific lines you have to say.” (In the traditional Lutheran church, we call that liturgy.)

So the couple visited about 10 different churches, but nothing seemed to fit. Melissa continued to research congregations, then said, “Hey Logan, there’s a church right down the street!” Melissa said that they attended the 10:30 a.m. contemporary worship and praise service, in the fall of 2012, and said, “This is it! No way we’re looking for another.”

Since then they've been finding their place in this faith community. She and Logan helped with the snacks for the Blessing of the Bikes, and Melissa accepted Cathy Martin’s invitation to help with altar ministry. “I said I have no clue what that is, but sure, I’ll do it,” Melissa said.

Melissa competing in
Silverback Lawrence Triathlon

She also learned about Pastor Mike’s love for marathons through following him on Twitter, so it was a natural connection to want to be part of a training group for runners and walkers that Pastor Mike wanted to start.

The group’s purpose is two-fold. “Running is a great way to create community,” Pastor Mike said. In a recent blog post, he cited how runners, whether they realize it, support a lot of charitable organizations through the sport. The training group is a springboard as such for those who might want to participate in the May 17, 2015 Triple Crown Showdown, a benefit for the Myasthenia Gravis Association. The run was started by Holy Cross Mission Partner Allison Foss, who has battled the disease her whole life. Her story can be found in an earlier blog by following this link: http://sherriarmel.blogspot.com/2013/08/allison-foss-living-with-chronic-disease.html

Melissa is a coach for the new Holy Cross training group, which for now meets at 11:30 a.m. Sunday mornings through early May. It’s a win-win situation for Melissa. “Once you get there,” she said, referring to what she has learned through a fit lifestyle, “you feel so healthy, and you want to help others feel healthy.”