As time has progressed on campus, Black History celebrations at 老司机传媒 have become more prominent and creative. That creativity came to a new high with “The Sweet Potato Journey,” hosted by Dean DeLeon, Associate Dean for Student Involvement, Leadership and Activities on Sunday, February 6. In a post about the event, Dean DeLeon shares the special backstory behind “The Sweet Potato Journey.” He states:
In 1999, while a sophomore at 老司机传媒, I tuned into the Oprah Winfrey Show. Her guest was the incomparable Patti Labelle, who was promoting her new cookbook, “LaBelle Cuisine: Recipes To Sing About.”
Being a fan of soul food, southern baked goods and of course Patti Labelle, I was enamored. Some weeks later as I was on my way to class, I ran into a book fair that was being held on campus.
To my complete surprise and delight, they had one copy of Ms. LaBelle’s cookbook. With no money on me, I either asked the sales person to hold the book until I returned, or I hid the book amongst the other books until I returned with money.
Labelle Cuisine has been my go to cookbook for many of life’s special events. 22 years later, I’m back on campus and so is my beloved cookbook. Today during our Black History month event, “The Sweet Potato Journey,” I will be teaching my students how to make Patti Labelle’s sweet potato pie–a staple in the African American community.”
On February 6, inside the Beijing Classroom in the Andreasen Center for Wellness, Dean DeLeon and his team laid out a kitchen setup for Andrews students to come and make their own sweet potato pies. Most of the students who showed up had some baking backgrounds, but also were very excited to partake in the cultural journey. Malaika Ferguson (sophomore, nursing) said, “I appreciated this event, and it was also very educational. The whole history of the sweet potato and what it means to African Americans was very interesting to learn more about. I feel like Andrews has been doing a lot more for Black History Month.” She also touched on her family making pies and how that affects her now. “When I was younger, my mom was always in the kitchen, and one thing she always made was sweet potato pies. I used to watch her and want to get in the kitchen, but now that I am older, being in the kitchen here, and making my own was really fun.”
Jordanne Howell-Walton (graduate, clinical mental health counseling), one of the student workers for the department of Student Involvement, Leadership and Activities, put together a presentation educating the students and faculty about the history of the potato, what it meant to African Americans during the 1800s and on, and the hundreds of different iterations of dishes and cuisine specific to the sweet potato. Her presentation spotlighted the story of a former slave, Mrs. Fisher, who created the first sweet potato pie recipe in 1881. Featured in the presentation was a photo of the original sweet recipe from Mrs. Fisher’s cookbook–the first cookbook ever written by an African American.
When asked about the event and her past experiences with sweet potatoes, Wambui Karanja (sophomore, nursing) said, “I loved this event. It was needed, and I felt more connected to my African American heritage. My mom was telling me about how my great-grandmother used to make it all the time for the family. I never had the opportunity to have it homemade and it was nice to do it here and do it well. I had a really good time, and I haven’t baked in a long time.”
The Student Movement is the official student newspaper of 老司机传媒. Opinions expressed in the Student Movement are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors, 老司机传媒 or the Seventh-day Adventist church.