“Mama Dip is a blessing.”
That’s what employee–and prison inmate–Paul Scott says. Scott is one of the many inmates who have worked their way through Mama Dip’s Kitchen through a work-release program as they prepare to re-enter society upon completing prison sentences in Orange and Durham counties.
We’ve written before about Mildred “Mama Dip” Council, who is a Chapel Hill institution in her own right, beloved by generations of students and townies for her good cooking and her community engagement.
This News & Observer article is just the latest reminder of how Mama Dip changes lives on a regular basis:
Council doesn’t judge the dudes who work for her, which may be the reason they seem to appreciate her so much. “I don’t ask them what they’ve done, but sometimes they tell me. They’re not all bad people. Most of them are locked up for drugs. If you could take a broom and sweep out all of the drugs, … you’d be surprised at what you might find.”
How can a community say enough thanks to match the quantity and quality of the gifts she has given? By dining at her restaurant, sure, that’s the delicious part; but also by saying thanks, publicly, as often as possible.
So thank you, Mama Dip, for your gifts and your willingness to give them. This town–and the world!–is a better place because of you.