Friday, October 16, 2026
photos by Jennifer A. Cline, college editor, except as credited
Culinary arts students who worked with Chef Rob Wood ’17 (center) to prepare the 2026 Visiting Chef Dinner pose with the chef in a Penn College culinary arts lab following the Oct. 9 event in Le Jeune Chef Restaurant. Front row (from left): Madison A. Lee, of Montgomery; Clara M. Wilson, of Willow Street; Emma J. Turner, of South Williamsport; Wood; Ryan A. Higgins, of Huntingdon Valley; and Danielle L. Williams, of Lancaster. Back row (from left): Chef Amanda Farr-Lepper, assistant professor of culinary arts; Romell D. Myrick, of Philadelphia; Ethan A. Arsenich, of Spring City; Paul A. Shimp, of Reinholds; Tyler S. Cressman, of Reading; Brandon J. Harris II, of Uniontown; Charlie J. Shimp, of Reinholds; and Alan Navarro, of Kennett Square. (Photo provided)
In the latest edition of Penn College’s Visiting Chef Series – an invaluable educational experience that launched in Spring 1992 – Chef Rob Wood, assistant general manager of the Jon Bon Jovi Foundation’s JBJ Soul Kitchen in New Jersey, spent three days leading baking and culinary students in the college’s kitchens, culminating in the Visiting Chef Dinner in Le Jeune Chef Restaurant.
Proceeds from the dinner support scholarships for Penn College baking and culinary students.
“For the past few days, I have had the privilege of working with the students that put together tonight’s meal, and they are a clear reflection of a well-run program,” Wood, who graduated with honors from Penn College in 2017, told Visiting Chef Dinner guests. “They put in long hours and worked tirelessly to prepare the food and serve everyone tonight.”
The menu consisted of several Asian-inspired hors d’ oeuvre, passed during a reception in the Keystone Dining Room, which also featured a table filled with breads prepared by baking students, pre-dinner action stations that served as stops on a tour through the baking & culinary program’s kitchens, and three courses prepared by culinary students and served in Le Jeune Chef Restaurant. Every table received an individualized selection of desserts: Each baking student developed a dessert menu and prepared a unique assortment of treats for their assigned table.
Wood is a Marine Corps. veteran who found his love for cooking while stationed in Japan. He invited the Marines who reported to him to his home for dinner on Wednesdays to give them a break from barracks life.
“Those evenings taught me the joy of hospitality and gave me an indescribable sense of pride in serving the food I had prepared,” Wood said.
Today, Wood’s spirit of giving through food is amplified at JBJ Soul Kitchen, which received the 2026 James Beard Impact Award. Wood, who began to work for the nonprofit community restaurant eight years ago as executive chef and manager for the Toms River location (read more about his role in a Spring 2020 Penn College Magazine), is now assistant general manager, responsible for operations and strategic planning at both JBJ Soul Kitchen restaurants – and he’ll soon oversee the opening of a third.
JBJ Soul Kitchen is a program of the Jon Bon Jovi Soul Foundation. Its mission is to fight food insecurity by welcoming everyone to its tables, regardless of their ability to pay.
“We provide a three-course meal in a restaurant-style atmosphere,” Wood explained. “Our menus change every two weeks so our regular guests never get fatigued from the same items over and over again.”
Guests who are able give a $20 donation for their meal – and can pay it forward by donating another $20 to offset the cost of a meal for someone who is unable to pay.
“For our guests that are going through hard times and unable to contribute monetarily, they receive the same menu, the same options and the same level of hospitality and service,” Wood explained. “We just ask that they do some volunteer work in the restaurant. … We have found that our guests begin to take ownership of the jobs they do and become empowered by helping within the restaurant, which allows us to give them a hand up, rather than a handout.”
He thanked those in attendance for supporting the event to help students as they work to build the careers of their dreams.
“You being here tonight really makes a difference in the lives of future students,” he told guests. “Because of you, they will have the opportunity to become part of the Penn College family and will go on to do great things. I wouldn’t be where I am today without Penn College, the culinary program, the mentorships, and the care the chefs put into preparing me for the industry.”
The dinner raised over $28,000 for the Visiting Chef Scholarship Fund. Sponsors for the 2026 Visiting Chef event were the Ken and Kristie Healy Foundation, the Logue Family and the Pellegrino Family.
Learn more about the Visiting Chef Series.
Working alongside Danielle L. Williams (left), and Romell D. Myrick (center), Wood adjusts a sauce’s seasoning.
In the baking lab, Ronald L. Bryant, of Farmington, prepares a dessert for his assigned table.
Tyler S. Cressman preps ingredients for Spam onigiri balls.
Paige M. Hemmig, of Blandon, sets up a dessert tower for her table. Each student developed their own menu of desserts for one of the guest tables.
Chef Christopher R. Grove, chef de cuisine for Le Jeune Chef Restaurant, offers instruction to students who would pass hors d’ oeuvres during a pre-dinner reception. In black, from left, are culinary arts students Logan M. Yashinski, of Oil City; Jaakob A. Gonzalez, of Reading; and Bella M. Hoy, of Mill Hall.
In addition to dessert, baking & pastry arts students prepared a variety of bread for the pre-dinner reception.
Wood is joined by his wife, Diana (second from right, partially obscured), Chef Frank M. Suchwala (left), associate professor of hospitality management/culinary arts, and Brian D. Walton (right), interim dean of business, arts & sciences, as he greets friends who traveled from other states to attend the dinner. They include fellow Marine Corps. veterans John and Morgan, who flew in from Florida and Texas, and fellow Penn College graduate Cory Smith (fourth from right), who received a baking & pastry arts degree in 2016 and drove four hours.
Charlie M. Suchanec, an applied management student and sous chef II for Le Jeune Chef Restaurant, describes one of the pre-dinner appetizers available to guests touring the college’s hospitality labs to President Michael J. Reed and his wife, Christina Steinbacher-Reed.
Student Emma J. Turner (left behind table), Le Jeune Chef sous chef II Luke C. Whipple, and student Ethan A. Arsenich help guests add toppings of their choice at a pre-dinner macaroni-and-cheese station in a culinary lab.
Lailah M. Baker, of Darby, plates her dessert offerings.
Wood chats with Chef Paul Mach, a retired assistant professor of hospitality management/culinary arts.
Jaakob A. Gonzalez serves Spam omigiri in the Keystone Dining Room.
Natalia E. Yondura, a baking & pastry arts student from Quakertown, leads a tour through the college’s baking & culinary labs.
Emma J. Turner serves mac-and-cheese to 2024 Visiting Chef George Logue III, a 2010 Penn College culinary arts graduate.
Wood consults with Amy L. Johle, Le Jeune Chef coordinator of restaurant operations/maître d’ hotel, and Lea B. Summerson, waitstaff.
Suchewala and Suchanec pause for a fun moment while serving a pre-dinner appetizer: dry-rubbed baby back ribs braised in pineapple juice, then deep fried and tossed in homemade Thai chili sauce and finished with green onions and black sesame seeds.
A fall harvest salad awaits guests. (Photo by Becky J. Shaner, alumni and donor relations director)
Paul A. Shimp (foreground) and Ryan A. Higgins tend to shrimp for the second course.
Students plate the second course: Soul-seasoned shrimp served over creamy grits with onions, celery and tri-colored peppers; finished with crispy andouille sausage and green onion curls.
Wood demonstrates the plating for the third course: short ribs with goat cheese polenta, rainbow carrots and bordelaise sauce.
Baking and pastry arts students pose for a photo while waiting to deliver their desserts to their tables.
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