Inmates are pushing dinner rolls, pumpkin pie

SPANISH FORK — At a little more than 6 feet tall and both arms darkened by tattoos, Dave Wimmer doesn't seem a likely candidate for a bakery chef.

But when Wimmer shows off trays of softball-sized rolls and glistening pumpkin pies made in preparation for today's Thanksgiving dinner at the Utah County Jail, it's hard to miss the pride in his eyes.

"I'm a welder — but I've always loved to cook and bake and eat," Wimmer says with a laugh. "The guys (in jail) tease me because I watch the cooking shows."

Wimmer is one of 40 inmates in the Spanish Fork jail who help prepare and serve 2,100 meals a day to other inmates and jail employees.

Most days, menus range from Navajo tacos to pizza and salad.

For Thanksgiving, though, the inmates will eat turkey, stuffing, potatoes and gravy, pies and, of course, Wimmer's homemade rolls.

And thanks to cost-effective techniques and frugal jail officers, each inmate's holiday meal — like most meals at the jail — will only cost taxpayers about 70 cents, said Utah County Sheriff Sgt. Dennis Harris.

Buying food in bulk, making meals from scratch and using fruits and vegetables from the jail garden helps the jail kitchen stay cost effective, jail officials say.

"I feel really confident as a citizen that we're getting the most bang for our buck," said Utah County Sheriff Lt. Grant Ferre, who works with support services, which includes the jail's kitchen.

This year, inmates grew more than 41,000 pounds of carrots, cantaloupes, corn, cucumbers, pumpkins, squash, tomatoes, zucchini and watermelon, allowing food options that otherwise would be too expensive.

"When you think of inmates in the jail, you don't think of them eating fresh watermelon," Ferre said. "(But) these inmates were eating fresh watermelon."

The six full-time cooks, one part-time cook and 40 inmate workers divide up two shifts in the kitchen. The first group comes in at 4:30 a.m. and trades with the afternoon shift around 2 p.m. or 3 p.m.

Through good behavior, inmates earn the privilege of working in the kitchen. The job helps them pass the time, they say, and provides the perk of being able to eat more food.

Jails must provide a holiday meal for Thanksgiving and Christmas as well as one hot meal a day to fulfill American Jail Association standards, Harris said. The Utah County Jail goes beyond that, however, by making each meal a hot meal.