Mary Cook's thoughts on first episode

Mary Cook works at Village of Barboursville Elementary as cafeteria manager. She is a resident of Barboursville and has been employed by the Cabell County Board of Education for 19 years. Before Village of Barboursville Elementary, she worked at Cabell Midland High School as a cook and Huntington High as a cafeteria manager. She graduated from Marshall University and has worked in some form of the food industry since she was 14. She had her own catering business for 10 years. She was president of the Parent-Teacher Association at Barboursville Elementary School for four years and Cabell County PTA president for two years. She has two children, three stepchildren and eight grandchildren.

QUESTION: What do you expect to see in this series?

"I expected the show to set Huntington and WV in a negative light. I was skeptical that this show was going to be informative as it is listed as a reality show."

QUESTION: After seeing the first episode, what are you expecting from the rest of series?

"After watching first episode I expect to see Jamie going through the difficult process of trying to change our mindset from processed to fresh."

QUESTION: How do you think Huntington/the school system was portrayed?

"I think Huntington was portrayed in a positive way, they showed some of the beauty in the town the hills and beautiful foliage. The school system, not in such a positive way. We do give our kids to many processed foods this comes from myself as a grandmother, a mother, and a cook. Jamie when you said we only use our ovens to heat food Not True."

QUESTION: Was your initial response to the episode positive or negative? Why?

"I enjoyed the show very much. He eased into the solutions for one of the nation’s biggest problems. I liked the family that Jamie is in the process of helping they were polite and accepting of the changes. I can’t wait to see what dad says about the changes. As for the school system -Hold your ground Rhonda and can Alice be changed?"

QUESTION: Does Oliver make it clear why he came here?

"I think he makes it very clear why he came to Huntington."