Famous chef provides food for thought
BY EILEEN MCCARVILLE
STAFF WRITER
You
might say Keith Famie is a "seasoned" traveler. Not only is
he a famous chef with a TV show, he survived 41 days in the Australian
Outback as a contestant on the hit show Survivor II.
Last week Famie captivated a young audience at Springfield Plains Elementary with his experiences, weaving in two topics sure to pique kids' interest -- adventure and food.
Students from four fourth-grade classes enjoyed Famie's presentation in the school's media center Nov. 14.
Starting as a dishwasher at age 16, Famie stepped up the culinary ladder until he became a chef -- which he described as a great job. He hosts Keith Famie's Adventures on the Food Network and has published a cookbook, Famie's Adventures in Cooking. Famie has traveled all over the world, cooking for foreign dignitaries as well as U.S. presidents Bush and Ford.
"Cooking has been my
passport to my lifetime adventures. It's enabled me to do things that
are pretty exciting. Everywhere you go, people have to do three things:
sleep, drink lots of water and eat."
Famie provided some fast-paced videos, both exciting and humorous, and encouraged students to sample some exotic fruits. At one point he blindfolded three fourth-graders, passing the samples and asking for their reactions.
The three taste-tested rambutan, a small fruit that resembles a cross between a kiwi and lychee nut, and durian, a larger fruit with a spiky shell one child described as "a big pine cone." Both come from southeast Asia.
The taste test drew mixed reviews. One child wrinkled his nose while another child liked it.
The goal, whether it be experiencing life in the Outback or tasting a new food, is this, Famie said: "Never be afraid to try something because it could be an adventure for you."
Famie also demonstrated his musical prowess, showing the kids how to play a didgereedo -- a long wooden flute-like instrument made from a branch of wood hollowed out by termites. The instrument, played by aborigines in the Outback, produces a low, sonorous sound. "You get a bunch of guys playing this at night, and it is a spiritual moment," Famie said.
Famie
also fascinated the children with tales of his adventures in such as
kangaroos and crocodiles -- as well as his experiences with animals
in other parts of the world.
At times, feeding a baby animal was also an adventure. At one point the video showed Famie coping with some over-anxious baby kangaroos. In another segment, the good-natured chef was repeatedly nipped on his behind by baby goats.
On the Survivor show, where he was selected from 52,000 applicants, one of the challenges was to swim across a river. As cast members prepared for the ordeal and witnessed crocodiles basking on the rocks, "you never saw so many people swim so fast with their clothes on," Famie quipped.
He also joked about how contestants had to share a toothbrush, drawing a collective "Eeeuuuwww."
The school was able to secure Famie, a north Oakland County resident, for the assembly through the Townsend family, whose children attend Springfield Plains. Clarkston resident Laura Townsend said her husband, Andrew, an advertising executive, met Famie at the grand opening of a dealership where Famie was the chef.
Prior
to the assembly, Famie spoke with the Clarkston Eccentric, expounding
on his goals and philosophies. As president of the Rainbow Connection,
a Michigan charity that benefits kids with life-threatening illnesses,
Famie takes a special interest in children.
He's also dad to two of his own: Alicia, 12, and Josh, 10. "My son's an adventure junkie," said Famie, who often takes his children on excursions. With real-life adventures like "feeding stingrays by hand, it's a whole other level."
Famie, rugged and tanned from his travels, is earnest about today's
youth and calls himself a motivational speaker as well as adventurer
and chef.
He likes to spread the message that "Anything's possible if you put your mind to it."
Although he loves doing events for adults, he also likes coming down to a kid's level with children, he said.
"If you can teach one kid one thing that they can take with them the rest of their life and remember you for it, you've done a good thing."
Last
week he apparently reached a roomful.
As fourth-grader Sam Bell
stood in line for Famie's autograph, he said he had no fear in tasting
the durian. "I liked the durian. Ohhhh, it's reaaallly good,"
said the appreciative youngster as he patted his stomach.