SWEET MEMORIES: School's lunchroom to be named for Jean Suzuki

The Maui News
Tuesday, May 09, 2006

By VALERIE MONSON, Staff Writer

HAIKU – Sweet memories of peanut butter cake, fresh from Mrs. Suzuki's oven, were floating through the halls of Haiku School once again Monday, even though it was nearly 20 years since the last slice had been served.

Word arrived earlier in the day that the state Legislature had officially declared that the school's lunchroom would be named for Jean Suzuki, the late cafeteria manager who did the impossible: she turned school lunches into gourmet meals, Haiku-style.

"You don't even see that kind of food today," said Suzy Aguirre, who attended the elementary school and is now an adult supervisor/clerk-typist there. "If anybody deserves this honor, it's her."

From 1952 to 1988, Suzuki – still known as Mrs. Suzuki to most everyone – kept the Haiku cafeteria spotless and stomachs full. The passing of time has not dulled the taste buds of the former students or staffers who still have their favorite Mrs. Suzuki special: shortbread cookies, Mulligan stew, Spanish green beans, mid-morning soups prepared from the previous day's leftovers and even lau lau made from government surplus in a can. The clear winner, however, was her famous peanut butter cake – a delicacy never experienced by anyone before or since.

"The smell of her peanut butter cake would spread around the campus," said Daria Boone, who attended the school from kindergarten through 5th grade and now teaches special education. "We always knew when she was making peanut butter cake."

Mrs. Suzuki died earlier this year on Jan. 19, just short of her 87th birthday. Friends organized a remembrance ceremony for her during the Haiku Ho'olaulea and Flower Festival a few weeks later and began wondering how they could permanently pay tribute to the woman who nourished their bodies and their souls.

State Sen. J. Kalani English was among those in attendance and suggested naming the cafeteria for her. Marian Zajac, vice chairwoman of the Haiku Community Association, and everyone else who had gathered that day to share stories of Mrs. Suzuki wholeheartedly agreed. The concurrent resolution that English introduced was adopted by the full Legislature on Thursday.

Mrs. Suzuki's family was equally honored – and humbled.

"She was very, very shy and quiet and never sought out publicity so this is the last thing she would have expected," said daughter Charlene Johnson when reached at her home in Washington, D.C. "I'm just really proud of her. To know that she could have touched so many lives."

Before Mrs. Suzuki came to Haiku School, she worked in cafeterias at Kealahou, Waiakoa and Keauhua schools. But it was at Haiku where she would find her cup of tea. Mrs. Suzuki would often arrive at work before dawn and leave just before dusk. It's believed that she was at the school longer than any other employee.

"She was so loyal and so dedicated to it," said Johnson. "It took her three times to retire. She would put in her resignation and then change her mind. After she finally did retire, she couldn't go back to the school for so long because it broke her heart. It was just such a huge part of her life."

When the school's lunch time was over, Mrs. Suzuki still had plenty more on her plate. She would offer students rides into town and pass out her children's hand-me-downs to those in need. Her cafeteria was immaculate.

Linda Holt, the reading teacher at the school, was at Keanae School when she got to know Mrs. Suzuki in 1980.

"She would prepare extra lunches in Haiku for our students here and they would all be taken frozen to Keanae by Redo Express once a week," said Holt. "She would send us entrees like spaghetti, the makings for salad and desserts. We had about 30 students then so it was the equivalent of making lunches for an entire extra classroom. She was such a dear lady."

Holt would occasionally see Mrs. Suzuki out in the community, away from the cafeteria and her apron.

"She would be wearing a pretty print dress and white gloves," said Holt. "She was always so proper."

Barbara Potts, now the computer teacher, came to Haiku School from California in 1985. Mrs. Suzuki's comfort food made her instantly feel at home.

"She would always add a little something extra to the teachers' lunches, something just for us," said Potts. "It made us feel really special. She was just so sweet and friendly."

For children whose families didn't have money for school lunches, there were jobs helping Mrs. Suzuki. Juliana Jacintho, now the health nurse, was one of the students who would come in at 6 o'clock every morning to cut vegetables, debone turkey, bake cookies or do whatever Mrs. Suzuki asked. In return, she would get to enjoy the food, like everyone else.

"Everything was fresh, she did everything from scratch," said Jacintho. "She was a great cook and baker."

Oddly enough, Mrs. Suzuki's favorite dishes at Haiku School never got served at home.

"Her cafeteria recipes, especially the desserts, didn't translate into smaller portions," said Johnson, who has yet to sample her mother's legendary peanut butter cake. "She tried to make some things at home, but it wasn't the same. So we loved it when she would bring us some of her shortbread cookies."

On June 1, from 10 to 11 a.m., a plaque will be dedicated at the school where the memories of an unassuming woman and her lunches of aloha will forever live on in the Jean Suzuki Cafeteria. Valerie Monson can be reached at vmonson@mauinews.com.

Copyright © 2005 The Maui News.

Original article URL: http://www.mauinews.com/story.aspx?id=19746

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