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Gary’s place is in the kitchen


By Kendra Thorstenson

Gary Wollman leads a busy life, as he is a gifted athlete, a Great Plains Family Restaurant cook, and God’s missionary.
These three things are very obvious priorities in Gary’s life. His parents are Johnny and Margie and he has three younger siblings: Grace, Anthony, and Katelyn.
Gary will be a senior at Mobridge-Pollock High School this fall and is involved in extracurricular activities such as choir, sports, and Bible study. His favorite class in school is Mr. Wiesbeck’s history class and his favorite sport is basketball.
“I am addicted to competition,” he said. “Ever since I was a little kid I had a ball in my hand.”
The list of sports Gary loves doesn’t stop at basketball as he enjoys football, track, fishing, swimming, and hunting. Other hidden talents and hobbies of Gary’s include beat boxing, drawing, and singing in the shower.
For now Gary’s future plans after high school are uncertain. “I plan to hopefully go to college, and maybe do some mechanics or ministry,” he said. These are two very opposite end of the spectrum but he said, “You never know where life will carry you.”
For now he will focus on the task at hand which is his job as a cook at Great Plains Family Restaurant. Gary started cooking about two years ago and said, “My mom and dad pretty much taught me everything I need to know.”
At first Gary tried being a waiter, but that didn’t work out so well. He told a story of a time when he was taking an order and wrote down four lunch specials instead of four breakfast specials. “They had to make all the food again, so that was a disaster,” said Gary. “I am scarred. But because of that I have a higher respect for waiters and waitresses today.”
After a couple of other mishaps, Gary decided his days as a waiter were over. Cooking for the restaurant is a much better fit for him and he said it is a lot of fun. His task the past week has been training two new employees, twins Kregen and Joshua Norder. Gary doesn’t think it will be too hard teaching them how things work at Great Plains. The most challenging part will be making sure they have good communication.
“When tickets are coming in, you have to cook fast. It can get stressful,” said Gary. “So communicating to get the food out and making sure people are happy can be a challenge.”
The stress is all worth it for Gary if it makes others happy. Gary recently made a lot of kids happy when he went on a mission trip to Honduras for two weeks in June.
His reasoning for going on the trip was, “to see the other part of the world and if I have an opportunity to do God’s work I am going to take it.”
Gary, his sister Grace Wollman, Eli Richards, Alison Deal, and Ben Deal went on the trip with him. The five of them joined 10 others from Sunshine Bible Academy in Miller, which takes a team to Honduras every summer.
The team started each day with devotions. As a group they would plan for the day by preparing games, activities, and coming up with creative ways to act out a Biblical message. They set out a daily plan for 30 to 40 kids ranging in age from 7 to 18.
Gary’s favorite part was playing soccer with the kids seeing their smiling faces. “It’s amazing how happy the kids in Honduras are when they have basically nothing,” said Gary. “People here have a lot and are not nearly as happy and thankful. It just wants you to be thankful and have a better attitude.”
His attitude towards service is an area in which Gary can tell his faith has grown because of the trip. Gary admitted he struggled with self-ambition. Once he was able to get past that and realize he was in Honduras to serve others and not for his own personal gain, he grew a lot in his faith.
After being back, his mindset has switched and he is thinking more about how he can help others, and not just himself. Gary said that he would absolutely go again if it were God’s will. But in the meantime, he is serving and ministering to those around him at school, in sports, and at Great Plains.

Gary Wollman’s Recipes

Rhubarb Dream Bars
Crust:
2 cups flour
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1 cup butter
Mix and press into 9 x 13 pan. Bake at 350F for 10 to 15 minutes.
Filling:
4 eggs
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup flour
1/2 tsp. salt
Beat until well blended.
Add:
4 cups rhubarb
1/2 cup walnuts (optional)
Pour over baked crust and bake another 45 minutes.

Peaches and Cream
Crust:
1 cup flour
1 stick butter
1/2 cup chopped nuts
Glaze:
1 cup sugar
3 tsp. corn starch
1 cup water
1 package apricot Jell-O
4 cups fresh peaches-sliced
3 tsp. lemon juice
Topping:
8 oz. package cream cheese
1 12-oz. whipped topping
2 cups marshmallows
Crust: combine and press into 9 x 13 pan. Bake 15 minutes and cool topping. Combine and spread on top of cooled crust.
Glaze: Mix sugar, cornstarch and water. Cook until clear and slightly thick. Add Jell-O and cook one minute. Add peaches and lemon juice. Spread over cream cheese layer. Press peaches under glaze and refrigerate.

Ramen Noodle Salad
1 medium head of cabbage
Desired amount of onion
2 bags ramen noodle
Sunflower seeds
Bacon—fried crisp
Dressing
1/2 cup vegetable oil
3 Tbsp. vinegar
3 Tbsp. sugar
2 Tbsp. soy sauce
2 packets of noodle seasoning
1/2 tsp. pepper
Mix together the cabbage, crushed ramen noodles, sunflower seeds, and bacon. In a small bowl, mix up ingredients for dressing. Combine and mix the salad and dressing. Refrigerate.

Gyro Sauce
1 cup plain Greek yogurt
1/2 cup sour cream
1 cucumber (grated and squeezed)
1 garlic clove
Salt and pepper to taste
This is the cool and creamy sauce that usually is served as a condiment on Greek Gyro sandwiches.
Spread this condiment on a pita or bread, and then add lamb and any other desired vegetables.

Gary Wollman (left) with Kregen (center) and Joshua Norder.

Gary Wollman (left) with Kregen (center) and Joshua Norder.

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