Tulsa Chef Leaves Country Club Behind To Feed The Hungry

It's hard to imagine a higher calling than helping feed hungry children. One local man was so inspired by the work done at the community food bank, it's changed his life.

Jeff Marlow started his career as a chef training at a country club in Duncan then worked his way to Tulsa's Forest Ridge.

"From there, I worked over at Southern Hills Country Club, under Devin Levine, and he's the living legend," said chef Jeff Marlow.

That experience landed him his dream job as executive chef at yet another Tulsa country club, The Oaks.

"All I've ever done is private country clubs before I came here to the Community Food Bank of Eastern Oklahoma," Marlow said.

That's right. Marlow traded in the country club life for a job at the Food Bank.

"My heart's always been here, and the opportunity came to where a position opened up here - and I said, why not," said chef Jeff Marlow.

Terry Hood, News On 6: "Now financially, did you have to take a step back to take this job?"
Jeff Marlow, chef: "Absolutely I did."

But after almost two months on the job, Jeff Marlow has no regrets. In fact, he's bursting with ideas to help get more healthy food into the hands, and stomachs, of those in need.

Learn More About Community Food Bank Of Eastern Oklahoma

"We're going to start packaging fresh vegetables and sending them to pantries so people can take these frozen vegetables home and create a meal themselves," he said.

To supplement the fresh veggies donated to the Food Bank, Marlow's expanding the garden and filling up his freezer space.

"We've got 40 tomato plants; we have okra, squash, zucchini, bell peppers," he said.

He's even working on a cookbook to help people put together easy, healthy, low cost meals.

"My goal here is to just feed more and more people," said Community Food Bank chef Jeff Marlow.

Life at the food bank may not be as glitzy as a country club - and the pay check may be not be as big - but Jeff Marlow is confident that what he receives, is something even more important.

"At the end of the day, I think its not all about the money, it's about what you get out of life, what you're doing," he said. "I'm saving the world one tomato at a time, you know?"