My name is Mark Whitehead and I’m from Eugene, Oregon.
Right after high school I tried going to college, but it didn’t appeal to me. I was working as a cook and my father didn’t like that career path. So one day I came home and there were two options laying on the desk for me. One was an application to the air force via my Dad; and the other was an up and coming culinary school in Portland that my Mom found an article in the newspaper. I thought about it for about 30 seconds and culinary school won out.
Over time, I worked in the culinary industry and was always searching for the perfect way to give back. The culinary career path had many rewards in making people happy through food and hospitality. However, I was still searching for a way to give and I tried many avenues, like feeding the homeless. In Eugene, I helped create breakfast for 200 people. I also worked at the local food bank. I even tried coaching the Special Olympics for a couple of years. Here in Hood River I have also donated my time at the food bank, warming shelter, Empty Bowl and many other food-related outreach programs.
Then one day a friend I hadn’t seen for awhile stopped by the hotel to visit. As she was walking out the door, she mentioned “Athletes 4 Cancer” and she told me a little about the idea for a new camp on Maui. I joked, “I bet you need a Chef to come along with you.” By my surprise, the very next day, Tonia Farman the founder of the organization was at my door interviewing me to help out. Less than a month later, I was on a plane to Maui not knowing what I had gotten myself into.
Tonia started “Kite-boarding 4 Cancer” to honor her brother who had passed away after a year and a half battle against Leukemia at age 19. The first year event was a huge success and they donated the proceeds to the hospital her brother had stayed at. The next year Tonia, her husband and Doctor Garret were brainstorming about a new idea of how to donate the money raised at “Kite-boarding 4 Cancer”. They came up with “Athletes 4 Cancer”, a camp that revolved around surfing, stand up paddling, canoeing and other outdoor activities. This camp was to help 19-35 year old cancer survivors get back a life normality which cancer had deprived them of. Through the help of the “John Wayne Cancer Foundation” and other grant money, the campers get to experience a true Hawaiian adventure. Some of these campers have never seen the ocean before! The idea behind the camps is to use adventure-based experiences such as surfing, outrigger canoeing, and standup paddling, as channels of healing and life-renewal that treat the mind, body, and soul. Athletes for Cancer’s programs aim to help young survivors not just survive, but thrive in all aspects of life.
A typical day at camp starts at 6:00 am for breakfast. Every year it surprises me how close strangers can be after just having met one another. By 7:30 am, the campers head out to surf while I stay behind to prepare the meals. I try to prepare nutritious, organic, and local cuisine to be served each day. This requires close to 14 hours of cooking and prepping every day. After a full day of activities, we conclude the evening with a campfire. This isn’t your typical campfire. Here we discuss the multitude of emotions that come with having to battle cancer. The campers feel comfortable opening up to one another because they understand what each of them has been through. One of the traditions at camp is to come up with a power name that best represents yourself and that is the name you go by for the week.
At my first camp we choose power names for each other by asking certain questions about one another. Through this process, my new name of Ahi was born. Ahi means tuna in Hawaiian. The next year when I went to camp, I had the option to change my name.
One of the outings is to surprise the campers with an all-day excursion of outrigger canoeing at the Kihei Canoe Club. I always go along for this excursion. Upon arrival at the canoe club, we are warmly greeted by children and adults, who are singing Hawaiian chants. The trip is led by Kimokeo, a Hawaiian elder. He brings a spirit through songs, prayers and Hawaiian legends to our campers. Before we even get into the canoes, he welcomes us into his ohana through his blessings and songs. Ohana means family, which is a big part of the entire camp experience. We then head out into the ocean in our outrigger canoes, learning Hawaiian lessons along the way to the ancient fish ponds. We get out of the canoes and walk along the sacred space that has been a part of the traditional Hawaiian culture for hundreds of years. One of his traditions is to bless us in a traditional Hawaiian prayer. As Kimikeo blesses us with the ocean water from the ancient fish pond, he asks each of us our name. When he came to me, I said “I’m Ahi”. He looked at me and said,”We need you”. This hit me right away and I knew my name was meant to be. Kimokeo was saying that ahi was needed to help feed and keep his community healthy. I knew I was brought to Maui to do the same for the cancer survivors. Each day I worked and prepared meals I remembered why I was at the camp.
Each time I return from the camps, I remind myself every day that through cooking I can help people and be a vital part of my community. In my Hood River Community, I want to help people in the same way I do at camp. This outlook is what has inspired “Ahi’s Ohana Catering”. Yes, it has been a long-time dream of mine to own my own business and a catering company is an ideal avenue toward realizing that dream. But, I also hope to utilize the business as a way to give back to my mainland ohana.
Mahalo and Aloha
