23rd Annual North Surrey Gingerbread Competition December 8th 2004
Braving torrential rains, 250 Gingerbreaders brought their edible creations to be judged at the 23rd Annual Gingerbread Competition. It is a very busy time in the Culinary Arts kitchens of British Columbia, but our students and their Chef Instructors make the effort to design and create in the medium of Gingerbread and Royal Icing for the delight of the hundreds of Elementary school children from District #36 who are invited to come and view the projects each year. And indeed our students are delighted as well. After all the hard work that goes into these creations our students can stand back and regard their work and that of their peers and know that they have achieved something of which they can be extremely proud.
This year’s event produced a wonderful array of projects ranging from traditional to exotic and sometimes bizarre houses, Japanese temples , Taj Mahals, playing fields, hockey rinks, castles, a Santa Jack in the Box, and a marvelous piece (the Stolen Church) transported all the way from Invermere on BC’s eastern border.
Eighteen secondary schools representing 10 school districts from the Lower Mainland and Fraser Valley (Vancouver, Richmond, Delta, Surrey, Langley, Abbotsford, Maple Ridge), Esquimalt and the Gulf Islands, and Invermere designed, built, and transported 104 exhibits for this year's competition.
Judging took place in the categories of Top Five Schools, Top Out of District School, Top Female Exhibit, Top Male Exhibit and Top Co-ed Exhibit. The top five schools were: North Surrey (127 points), Frank Hurt (80), Enver Creek (61), Garibaldi (58), and Queen Elizabeth (44). The Top Out of District award, with an aggregate total of 58 points, went to Garibaldi Secondary from Maple Ridge. A team of young ladies from Queen Elizabeth took the Top Female Award with 97.5 points for "Santa's Coming to Town." Top Male award went to Mike Wood from Garibaldi for his 92.75 point piece called “Midnight”. The team of Tara Hartl and Shawn Mann from Enver Creek Secondary earned the Top Co-ed award for their 91 point creation “Christmas Magic.”
Five special categories of awards were also presented trophies this year:
Best Use of Gingerbread
- to Jason Harvey, Kris Weller, and Jeremy Welsh
from David Thompson in Invermere for their entry “The Stolen Church” (92.25 points).
Most Skillful and Artistic Use of Icing
- to Randip Jhund, Akanksha sharma, Faiza Iderees, and Karanvir Binning
of Queen Elizabeth for "Victorian Farm House" (96 points).
Best Landscaping
- to Mike Wood from Garibaldi for "Midnight" (92.75 points).
Most Original Idea
- to Michaela Mutch, Penny Dale, and Kyra Steffler from Gulf Islands Secondary
for their exhibit "Japanese Temple" (94.75 points).
Best Overall Entry
- to Amanda Lelik and Georgina Gamez of Queen Elizabeth for
"Santa’s Coming to Town" (97.50 points).
The responsibility of judging this year was placed in the hands of: Bob Chadwick (Associate Superintendent, District # 36 - Surrey), Cynthia Lewis (Assistant Superintendent, District # 36 - Surrey), Laurae McNally (School Trustee, District # 36 - Surrey), and Heather Stilwell (School Trustee, District # 36 - Surrey). The projects brought to this event are of such calibre that the task of judging can be very challenging and complex. Thank you very much to these people for taking time out of their busy working schedules to help make this event a success.
Co-Chairs of this event, Chefs John Haen (North Surrey) and Wolf von Oelffen (Frank Hurt) convey their thanks to the British Columbia Secondary school Teaching Kitchens and their Teaching Chefs for the continued participation in this competition.
On behalf of all the participants and their instructors I would like to take this opportunity to personally thank Chefs John Haen and Wolf von Oelffen and their teams of student and teacher organizers. Also thanks go to Principal Allan Buggie and the staff and administration of North Surrey Secondary for again hosting this annual event and welcoming the participants and the huge numbers of general public to their school. Many thanks are due to our Culinary Arts and Chef Training students who have once again proved how much talent exists in British Columbia’s Culinary Arts programs. Congratulations to all on a job well done!
Terry Larsen, Chef Instructor, Enver Creek Secondary
December 9, 2004
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Left: Top Co-Ed Project Right: Top Female Project and the Best Overall Entry |
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Left: Most Skillful and Artistic Use of Icing Sugar Right: Top Male Project and the Best Landscaping |
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Left: The Most Origional Idea Right: The Best Use Of Gingerbread |
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