Carolyn Kaufman works long hours.

She has to. She has a lot of mouths to feed.

Kaufman, food service manager for the Kosciusko County Jail in Warsaw, puts in 12-hour days of nonstop work overseeing a staff of eight inmate trustees to prepare 1,000 meals a day for the jail’s population.

“As soon as we’re done cleaning up from one meal, we start preparing the next meal,” she said.

Kosciusko County Sheriff Rocky Goshert, left; Carolyn Kaufman, food service manager for the jail; and Jail Commander Mike Mulligan pose amid the equipment of the jail’s kitchen, which serves 1,000 meals a day, 365 days a year. (Photo by Ray Balogh)

She also does the ordering and menu planning, balancing nutritional mandates, budget parameters and preparation of special meals to accommodate inmates with particular dietary, medical or religious needs.

“Each meal we serve contains 4 ounces of fruit, 4 ounces of vegetables, 4 to 6 ounces of protein and a starch like bread, potatoes or pasta,” she said. Dessert is also included daily, with brownies served every Friday.

The daily allotment for each inmate is between 2,800 and 3,000 calories, more for pregnant inmates.

Menus are certified by a dietitian and produced to the state’s jail commander every year.

Kaufman works a four-day-on, four-day-off schedule, alternating kitchen duties with Roeleta Borkholder.

Kaufman also trains the inmates specially chosen by the guards to work in the kitchen.

“It takes about a week to train them in,” she said. “Each inmate is trained to do everything in the kitchen. The newest ones start with the least responsibilities, washing pots and pans, and work their way up.”

Her tireless efforts have not gone unnoticed by her superiors.

“Carolyn does a wonderful job with the meals and the cleanliness of the kitchen,” said Jail Commander Mike Mulligan.

“The state jail inspector said this is one of the cleanest, most well-kept kitchens in northern Indiana, and the only ones this nice are brand new. Our jail is 20 years old.

“I mostly don’t have to worry about the kitchen because Carolyn does such a good job.”

Kosciusko County Sheriff Rocky Goshert echoed the kudos.

“It’s a huge undertaking,” he said. “We have an excellent staff. We are very fortunate to have the people we have.”

Department personnel, top to bottom, view the food service as only part of the larger picture.

“I see a definite correlation between the quality of the meals and the morale of the population,” said Mulligan.

“It is the responsibility of the sheriff’s department to provide them with everything and one of those things is nutrition.

“Yes, they are inmates, but they are people. They are still somebody’s mom, dad, brother, sister or child.”

He has talked with inmates transferred from other facilities, such as those in Chicago and Detroit. “They have told me this is hand’s down the best facility they have been in.”

Kaufman sees her work as more than just a job.

“For me it is almost more a ministry than a job,” she said. “I take it as a mission to shine my light in a dark place.”

She shines that light a little brighter twice a year, providing special holiday meals at Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Her goal is to serve the inmates for under $1.50 a tray. Judging from the department’s food budget of $400,000, roughly the same as its medical budget, she does just that.

Kaufman and Mulligan consider feedback from the population. “Favorites are Taco Tuesday and tater tot casserole,” she said. “The hardest is fish, because of a lot of allergies.”

Mulligan said, “The expectation from the sheriff is high and it just seems to work. Everyone has pride in what we do.”