Café Bacchus hosts dinner to honor their most influential Culinary Women for Women’s History Month
Women's History Month
The public celebration of women's history in this country began in 1978 as "Women's History Week" in Sonoma County, California. The week which included March 8, International Women's Day, was selected. In 1981, Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) and Rep. Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.) co-sponsored a joint Congressional resolution proclaiming a national Women's History Week. In 1987, Congress expanded the celebration to a month, and March was declared Women's History Month.
This week the owners and chefs at Café Bacchus would like to commemorate the women who have had the most influence on their lives and cooking experiences- their Mothers and Grandmothers. The inspiration for this article comes from Dessell Puckett who is 90 years old on March 17th and whose birth year marks the ratification of the 19th amendment which after 70 years of struggle granted women the right to vote. The deciding vote was cast by Representative Harry Burn who carried a note in his pocket from his mother encouraging him to vote for women’s suffrage.
The 1930’s marked the beginning of the dust bowl and the continuation of the Great Depression. In 1931 Grandma Dessell lost her father. She was one of the younger children of twelve and learned early to that hard work was essential. Her large Irish family farmed in the hollers of Southern WV and she contributes her cooking influences to her Mother and her five sisters.
In 1937 the same year, Amelia Earhart attempted to be the first women to fly around the world; Dessell married and began testing her wings at raising a family. Grandma was definitely more successful having one boy and two girls over the next five years. In 1938, far away in El Paso Texas, Cecilia (Aguilar) Spade, my mother, was born.
http://www.biography.com/womens-history/timeline
1941-1945
At the outbreak of World War II, American men go off to war in droves and leave a gaping hole in the workforce needed to build the tools of war. To meet the demand, government actively recruits women to fill the gap. Initially, the effort was met with resistance so the government created a promotion campaign to sell the public on the idea and recruit able-bodied women into the workforce. "Rosie the Riveter" was a compilation of different efforts by private industry and government to get more people involved in the war effort. After the war, many women returned to their domestic roles in the home, but many remained working while their husbands went back to school under the G.I. Bill. Though female numbers in the workforce dropped off after the war, they never returned to their lower pre-war levels.
From 1948 to 1951, Dessell was the President of the Farm Women’s Club. She and its members started the hot lunch program from the local grade school. Through fundraising efforts they purchased equipment, organized and received food via the government then volunteered to cook lunch for the many children.
Meanwhile, as my mother Cecilia was growing up her biggest influence in cooking was her mother. Her traditional household, private school education and influences of the world in the 1950’s would seemingly make her the perfect Stepford wife. After graduating from high school, she attended college. Cecilia’s sincere interests in helping her fellow man lead her to being a social worker. In 1962, she fell in love and married a man from West Virginia who was in the Air Force and stationed in El Paso, Texas.
According to http://www.enotes.com/1950-lifestyles-social-trends-american-decades/womens-roles
Housekeeping and raising a family were considered ideal female roles during the 1950s, although that standard was less rigid than in previous decades. With marriage and birthrates booming, women were becoming wives and mothers at unprecedented levels. But more women were entering the work-place as well. During World War II women by the millions took factory jobs to make up for the domestic manpower shortage. After the war the number of working women dropped, but by 1950 it was climbing again, at the rate of a million a year. By 1956, 35 percent of all adult women were members of the labor force, and nearly a quarter of all married women were working. As A. W. Zelomek, president of the International Statistical Bureau, reported in A Changing America (1959), two out of five women with husbands and school-age children worked outside the home. However, working women had yet to attain many positions.
In June 1949, Veronica Aiken, mother to Chef Heath, was born in New York City. After studying fashion in high school, she moved to San Francisco in 1968. During the 1960’s, San Francisco was a haven for artists of all types and her creative energy fit right in.
http://www.biography.com/womens-history/timeline
1965
President Lyndon Johnson's affirmative action policy of 1965 expands to cover discrimination based on gender. As a result, federal agencies and contractors must take active measures to ensure that women as well as minorities enjoy the same educational and employment opportunities as white males.
In 1966, Dessell became an early widow and Cecilia became a W.V. resident. They both were in transition and each prospered in their own way. Dessell moved to Bluefield, WV where she interned to be a florist. In 1968, she opened Valley Flower in Rainelle, WV and this successful flower shop was kept in the family until the 1980’s. Cecilia’s internship was “down on the farm” where she was taught the Appalachian self-sufficiency of food and culture. She learned how raise a garden, can vegetables, tend to livestock, drive a tractor, put up hay and host of other activities that make up the life of a farmer. She embraced her new life and was accepted into the community despite her cultural and religious differences.
In the 1970’s all three ladies were hard at work. Dessell as the sole owner of Valley Flowers was busy making flower arrangements for every occasion. Cecilia was raising my two brothers and me as well as tending up to 30 head of cattle and a huge garden. While Cecilia learned the farming traditions, she also taught many friends, neighbors and relatives about her culture. To this day, you can find authentic Mexican food in this small town in Southern WV. Meanwhile, Veronica was a student at Cal State San Jose as well as raising her son, Heath. She graduated in 1977 and became an event planner. Veronica has organized events that have included Maya Angelou, Ray Charles, Alex Hayley, Sarah Vaughn, B.B. King and the mayor of Los Angeles.
1980’s
In 1981, President Ronald Reagan nominates Sandra Day O'Connor to become the first woman to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court. As an associate justice, O’Connor becomes the crucial swing vote for many cases where the Court is split along ideological lines.
Also, in 1981, President Reagan nominates Jeane Kirkpatrick as the first woman to serve as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations.
1986
In 1986, Oprah Winfrey becomes the first African American woman to host a nationally syndicated talk show when "The Oprah Winfrey Show" debuts.
In the early 1980’s, Veronica became friends and neighbors with two of the chefs from Chez Panisse. They had a heavy culinary influence on a young, impressionable Heath Finnell. His interest in food became more practical as his teenage appetite increased and Veronica’s event planning expanded.
In 1982, Cecilia divorced and moved to California where she taught and was very involved in the Long Beach Teachers Union. In 2006, she moved back to WV and lives here in Morgantown.
1990’s
In 1995, Lt. Col. Eileen Collins becomes the first American woman to pilot a Space Shuttle.
Nominated by President Bill Clinton in 1997, Madeleine K. Albright becomes first woman U.S. Secretary of State. Before that, she served as U.N. Ambassador.
President Bill Clinton also appoints Janet Reno in 1993 to serve as the first woman U.S. Attorney General.
In the 1990’s, after helping her son, Heath, through the California Culinary Academy in San Francisco Veronica moved back to her roots in New York City. Her latest event planning has been with the Harlem YMCA and other neighborhood gigs.
To this day, Dessell continues to make flower arrangements and is also known for her fabulous pound cake.
As our most influential women begin to mellow other women in the USA have been making great strides as illustrated from http://www.biography.com/womens-history/timeline
In 2000, Hillary Rodham Clinton becomes the only First Lady ever elected to the United States Senate.
In 2005, Condoleezza Rice becomes the first African-American woman appointed Secretary of State.
In 2007, Nancy Pelosi becomes the first woman Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives.
For 90 years, Dessell has experienced many changes and history. To celebrate her St. Patrick’s Day birth and her Irish heritage, Café Bacchus will have the traditional Corned Beef and Cabbage dinner on March 17th. On Friday, March 19th and Saturday, March 20th, Café Bacchus will expand the menu to incorporate more influences. The Matriarch Dinner Feature will be served in addition to our regular menu. The 3 course dinner will be $35.
Salad Course:
California Salad (to celebrate Veronica’s influence from her days in San Francisco)
Entrée Course:
Corned Beef and Cabbage (to celebrate the Irish heritage that is part of the ancestry of owner, Executive Chef and Sous Chef at Café Bacchus)
Cheese Enchiladas, Mexican Rice and Beans (to celebrate Cecilia’s heritage and her influence on the culture in Southern WV)
Dessert Course:
Pound Cake (to showcase Dessell’s most requested cake for any celebration)
