By PAUL KEDINGER

Managing Editor

Members of the Rayne City Council and their audience were treated to what will hopefully be a national winning presentation by members of the Rayne High School ProStart culinary arts and food service management team duringMonday night’s Council session.

The team of Joli Angelle, Destiny Kapp, Rebecca Palma and Victoria Williams will compete in the ninth annual National ProStart Invitational on April 30 to May 2 in Overland Park, Kansas.

The team members, along with their teacher Kandice Dequeant, re-enacted the presentation which earned them the state competition and the privilege of competing at the national level.

Their teacher told Council members and Mayor Jim Petitjean that this was the time in ten years that the ProStart culinary competition has been won by a team outside of New Orleans.

The Rayne team participating in the management competition demonstrating their knowledge of the restaurant and foodservice industry by developing a restaurant proposal, delivering a verbal presentation, and applying critical thinking skills to challenges managers face in day-to-day operations.

Using a Power Point presentation the Rayne team created Meilé, a eco-friendly restaurant and detailed signature lunch and dinner menus, a full array of day-to-day operating procedures and staffing requirements.

The team even wore matching white shirts imprinted with the Meilé logo.

Following their presentation, Mayor Petitjean commented, “We have tremendous talent in our young people.”

In order to assist the team in paying travel expenses to the national competition, the Council approved a street drive permit for ProStart on Friday and Saturday, April 16 and 17, in the city. The drive will be conducted from 4 to 6:30 p.m. Friday and from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday.