MY FAVORITE RECIPES - Meet Suzy McNeilly, Dusty

Jana Mathia | Feb 03, 20110

Volunteering has been instilled in Suzy McNeilly since an early age. She attended a Catholic International girls’ school in Yokohama, Japan, where students were encouraged by nuns to do service work. She kept volunteering and serving throughout her life. Suzy’s record of volunteer work continues as she is now the volunteer coordinator/ training specialist for the Council on Aging for Whitman County.

While she was born in San Diego, Calif., Suzy grew up on a Navy base in Japan.

“I was the only red-head in the whole school,” she recounted.

Her family moved back to the states, she graduated from high school in California and then went back into the Navy.

As a Marine wife, she was a key volunteer and the liaison between the base volunteers and higher-ups. Suzy also served in Iceland as director of the NATO base health and wellness center. While there her mentor told her she couldn’t advance without a degree. When she moved back to the states she attended night school in North Carolina.

After earning her degree in psychology, Suzy moved to Spokane where her father lived and worked at a retirement facility. While visiting Colfax one weekend she saw an advertisement for a coordinator of volunteers at the Council on Aging. The position fit her background and she soon moved down to Colfax to take the job.

She is responsible for finding and training volunteers across the county to help their area seniors. Volunteers of all ages and abilities are needed for everything from light housekeeping to companionship and computer skills.

“Like if grandma wants to learn how to do Facebook,” she said.

Suzy noted that with the state cutting back hours and care for seniors, the need for volunteers is growing.

Part of her job is also in helping people who are already providing care. Suzy recently returned from training in Portland and is now a certified trainer for Powerful Tools for Caregivers. That program endows caregivers with tools on managing stress and taking care of themselves.

“It’s not how to take care of someone else, it’s how to take care of themselves,” she noted. “We’re going to equip them with those tools.”

Suzy has been with the Council on Aging since 2006 and still enjoys finding and supporting volunteers throughout the county.

“I just like getting out there and meeting people,” she said.

As much as she is able, Suzy enjoys spending time with her family, whether it be working cattle with her husband or going to the East Coast to visit her children and grandchildren. Her two daughters and three grandsons live in North Carolina with her son in Virginia. She said she tries to get back there or have her family come west to visit her four or five times a year.

Working cattle at home means being outside and spending time with her husband.

“I just like to be outside in the fresh air,” she said, adding that the cattle have grown on her. She also enjoys spending time with her spouse going on drives and day trips.

In her spare time Suzy also loves to scrapbook and cook. She is a yoga instructor and for the past two years has taught weekly yoga classes at Nancy’s School of Dance.

“It’s such a nice let down at the end of the day,” she said of the yoga.

With the need for help for seniors growing and the constant demand for new volunteers as current ones age or run out of time, Suzy keeps busy finding and training more volunteers. Her love for helping people grows as she finds new ways to serve, whether it is the seniors or her family.

Recipes:

Icelandic Pancakes

(Traditional Icelandic dessert served with afternoon coffee/tea or after a meal. Also great for brunch).

1-1/4 to 1/2 cup milk

1 tsp. vanilla

2 eggs, separated

2 Tbsp. butter, melted

1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp. baking powder

Toppings: Preserves, Jam or Jelly; Whipping Cream; Powdered Sugar

In a bowl, mix together the milk, eggs yolks, butter & vanilla. Sift together the flour, baking soda & baking powder; mix into the liquids until well-blended. Beat the egg whites and lightly fold into the mixture.

Heat a heavy skillet until a drop of water bounces off the surface. Butter the skillet. Bake thin pancakes, using 1/4 cup batter per cake until browned on both sides. I usually flip the cake when the top begins to appear ‘dry’.

Spread with topping of choice, powdered sugar & whipped cream. Fold into triangles and serve immediately. Makes 10-12 pancakes.

*This recipe is from the Intercultural Workshop, NATO Base, Keflavik, Iceland*

Curry Rice

1 lb. Beef stew meat (or chicken)

Potatoes

Onions

Carrots

Curry Brick

Cooking Oil

1-2 apples, cored & diced (optional)

Toasted Coconut (optional)

Prepare your beef & vegetable as you would for making stew. Heat oil in pan. Brown beef in oil until lightly browned. Add onions, cooking until translucent. Add potatoes & carrots. Add water to cover meat & veggies. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover & simmer until meat is tender. If you are going to add apples, this would be the time. Break curry brick into blocks. Stir into stew mix until dissolved. Simmer for about 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Serve over steamed rice. May top with toasted coconut, if desired.

Curry Bricks can be found in the Asian Food section of most markets. The flavors are Mild, Medium, or Hot.

Biscotti

1/2 cup vegetable oil

3 eggs

1 cup white sugar

1 Tbsp. baking powder

3-1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1 Tbsp. anise extract or 3 drops anise oil (vanilla extract may be used instead)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Grease cookie sheets or line with parchment paper.

Beat together the oil, eggs, sugar and anise until well blended. Combine the flour and baking powder, stir into the egg mixture to form a heavy dough. Divide dough into two pieces. Form each piece into a roll as long as your cookie sheet. Place both rolls onto your cookie sheet, and press down to 1/2 inch thickness.

Bake for 25-30 minutes, until golden brown. Remove from the baking sheet to cool on wire rack. When the cookies are cool enough to handle, slice each one crosswise into 1/2 inch slices. Place the slices cut side up back onto the cookie sheet. Bake for an additional 6-10 minutes on each side. Slices should be lightly toasted. Place on wire rack to cool.