Chef Jeff Henderson (Chef Jeff), New York Times best-selling author and TV host will be at Shasta College Thursday, April 6, 2017 to share the life lessons he’s gained on his redemptive journey from drug dealer to TV celebrity chef to nationally acclaimed speaker. Chef Jeff will be on the Shasta College Tehama Campus to present and answer questions at 10am with another talk on the Shasta College Main campus at 2pm followed by a book sale and signing at 3pm. Chef Jeff has devoted himself to mentoring and motivating at-risk and vulnerable Americans by sharing his inspiring and remarkable story of achievement. This event is free and open to the public.
Chef Jeff Henderson discovered his passion and gift for cooking in a most unlikely place —prison. Now an award-winning chef, bestselling author and Food Network television star, he is one of the most influential role models in the country. Drawing from his personal journey of redemption—from imprisoned drug dealer to renowned celebrity chef and TV star—he provides audiences with inspiration, real life strategies and unique life lessons to help others reboot their own dreams, expand their perspective and gain a new foothold on the ladder to success. Chef Jeff is the creator of the Food Network’s reality series, The Chef Jeff Project, the host of Family Style with Chef Jeff, and the star of the popular current series, Flip My Food with Chef Jeff, in which he meets with guests from across the country and teaches them how to “flip” their favorite dishes and guilty food pleasures into healthier culinary masterpieces. Chef Jeff is the New York Times best-selling author of Cooked: From The Streets To The Stove, From Cocaine to Foie Gras and, his most recent book, If You Can See It, You Can Be It.
Jeff Henderson was born in South Central Los Angeles 1980, and was raised by his mother and grandparents. Jeff was put into jail multiple times and was stabbed in the chest when he was 16 over a gang-related dispute. After moving to San Diego, Jeff became involved with a drug dealer and began selling drugs throughout Southern California. In 1996, Jeff was arrested by the San Diego Drug Task Force and charged with intent to distribute illegal narcotics. He was to spend the next decade in a state prison– which changed his life. Jeff developed a friendship with a fellow inmate named Friendly Womack whom mentored Jeff in the prison kitchen. Jeff discovered his passion for cooking while in prison, and once he was released, moved to Las Vegas to pursue his dream of becoming an executive chef. Without any formal cooking instruction, Jeff went on to become the first African-American executive chef at the Bellagio, a New York Times best-selling author and TV host.
This event is made possible by the Shasta College Foundation and the STEP-UP Program.
