Lunch lady serves PCM for final time after 30-year career

PRAIRIE CITY – When Grinnell native Teresa Versendaal moved to Prairie City from Texas in 1979, she had no idea she would be serving PCM students for three decades.

From endless piles of dishes that required washing to the strain of carrying giant sheet pans full of sweet concoctions into the oven, the kitchen manager had to complete a variety of tough tasks to do before her day ended at 1:30 p.m.

But probably to her biggest surprise, she loved it.

“It has been a good place to work. It really has. It was very fulfilling,” the 30-year employee said. “This is kind of a joke in the kitchen when I first started. I always said, ‘I won’t be here then.’ I outlasted all of (my co-workers) ... I guess it really grew on me.”

After 30 years of working in the nutrition service department for the PCM school district, Versendaal clocked out for the final time Jan. 31.

According to the longtime food service employee, she started working at PCM in 1978, transporting meals to the old elementary school and bringing dirty dishes back to the middle school. With two kids in school at the time, she said the job was perfect as she lived only two blocks away. She said the job was ideal because it allowed her family to save both on babysitter and gas expenses.

“I got nervous cooking for this many people. We were cooking for 500. Middle schoolers can be the biggest critics,” she said. “I was nervous my first day, but I really didn’t have a whole lot (of difficulties my first year). I had a lot of help. I worked with good people.”

She said in her three decades working in the district, she was able to watch her two kids and their friends grow up, support their hobbies and after-school activities, and have fun along the way.

“’Hi Katie’s mom’ and ‘Hi Kendra’s mom,’ I went through that ... my youngest daughter got friends that go to school here now,” Versendaal said. “It is fun to see the kids come through ... when you see the kids happy and stuff, it just makes you happy. It rubs off on you.”

Versendaal said although she is looking forward to the retired life away from the food industry, she said she will really miss interacting with the students and chatting with her co-workers.

“I am going to miss her 30 years of knowledge and experience,” co-worker Linda Rossow said. “She taught me a lot. She taught me to mix the wet before the dry and to be careful what you wish for. She taught me how to make macaroni.”

Versendaal said from watching kids grow up to getting to know other PCM staff, she has collected several fond memories over her 30 years in the nutrition service department.

“For Halloween, we used to dress up. Sometimes we would do a theme. We would do Wizard of Oz. We would try to get all the characters in. I was always a witch. I had the hat,” Versendaal said. “We really did have a fun group. We tried to make fun out of everything. We would turn off the lights during Halloween and put stuff in a big kettle. We would serve that way ... I really miss the people I started with.”

She said she will also miss making large portions of her favorite dishes. One dish, in particular, is the homemade rolls.

“I liked doing bread. It is the one thing that scares a lot of people at first, but you can’t mess it up. You work with the dough. The mixer mixes it for you. It is a no-brainer in a way,” she said. “I like making it but, I don’t eat much of it. I like the smell of it, but I’m not a bread person, in terms of eating it. But you can take your anger out on the dough. If you are angry, you can just hit that dough.”

In her few weeks of retirement, she said she still getting used to not following her regular work routine, such as waking up at 4:30 a.m. She said she hopes to spend more time with her grandchildren in Flagstaff, Ariz. and maybe learn a few new skills, like crocheting.

Contact Anthony Victor Reyes at areyes@myprairiecitynews.com.