Ortonville- Food offerings at Brandon Fletcher Intermediate School on Nov. 21, were, well, not the average fare.
Instead of pizza or chicken nuggets, students dined on such entrees as squirrel stew, turtle soup, wild boar sausage, and venison chili as part of the annual Wild Game Feast.
‘I tried everything but venison,? said Jake Selak, a sixth grader, who explained that he has venison at home, since he and his dad are hunters. ‘The rattlesnake is good. It tastes like chicken, but I can feel the scales.?
Marie Riegel, another sixth grader, agreed that the rattlesnake dish was good. She also liked the alligator.
‘I’ve had venison before and like it,? she said. ‘I’m not worried about trying anything. I like all of it.?
Parents prepared all of the food and did set up and clean up.
Mike Simon, whose daughter is a student at BFIS, made almond boneless pheasant.
‘It’s just like Chinese (almond boneless chicken),? he said. ‘I bought the sauce from the Chinese place, but fried the pheasant at home.?
Sixth grade teacher Lyn Coffey organizes the Wild Game Feast. This was his 13th year having the event.
‘Living in Ortonville, I wanted kids to be aware of how important saving habitat is,? says Coffey. ‘When we save it, we have all this game… If we don’t save habitat this can’t happen.?
Coffey notes that some kids come from hunting families and are used to eating wild game, while other students? first reaction is to say, ‘ewww.? Popular dishes included rattlesnake and bear, while he said the pickled eggs didn’t go over so well.
‘But they get in here and try very different and unusual things and get excited,? he said. ‘Some kids will never have another opportunity to have this kind of feast. It’s one of those things they never forget.?