A catering student from Merthyr Tydfil who found a love of baking while recovering from spinal surgery has showcased her cooking talents at an American summer camp.
Eloise Powell, from Gurnos Road, spent her summer in the Hamptons, New York, passing on her cooking talents to young people part of the Camp America programme.
The 23-year-old was diagnosed with scoliosis, a curvature of the spine, aged 14 and was finally able to have surgery to address the problem in 2011.
It was during the long recovery that Eloise decided to make the switch from the hairdressing course she had originally enrolled on to study professional cookery at Coleg y Cymoedd’s Ystrad Mynach campus.
Having enjoyed baking since she was a little girl, Eloise is now determined to teach cooking in a further education environment and feels the Camp America experience has given her a good grounding in working with young people.
“My operation inspired me to really push myself in my career. I now have the drive and determination to gain experiences like my trip to America that I can love to bring back to Wales,” Eloise said.
“Coleg y Cymoedd could not have been more supportive of me, and the course has given me the confidence to be more inventive in my cooking. I want to inspire others to work hard to pursue their dreams, something that I would not have realised without the relationships I have with my catering tutors.
“The different culture in New York is amazing and I loved exploring. It was a once in a lifetime opportunity for me.”
Eloise was the first catering student from Coleg y Cymoedd to be accepted onto the Camp America programme, a camp provider that sends more than 7,000 young people to work at camps in all 50 states of the USA every year.
The young chef spent eight weeks in New York devising her own syllabus and teaching students how to develop their cooking.
Kelly Jennings, a previous coordinator with Coleg Morgannwg’s Boost Programme which promotes extra-curricular activities, helped Eloise with the Camp America application process.
She said: “I am immensely proud of Eloise’s achievements and it was a pleasure to share her journey to America with her. Eloise has been busy with other commitments around college, keeping on top of her coursework while finding time to complete other enrichment opportunities, and has still found the determination to secure herself a place in Camp America.”
