IF PEOPLE THINK THIS IS A JOB FOR PEOPLE WHO
OTHERWISE MIGHT NOT BE ABLE TO FIND A JOB, THEY ARE
VERY MISTAKEN. IT TAKES A PERSON OF GREAT INTEGRITY
AND COMMITMENT TO BE ABLE TO DO THIS JOB PROPERLY.
needed for the job that she has to do is
integrity; and who tackles those notknowing moments with verve and uses
them as an opportunity to come out
knowing more. “The one thing I have
realised over the years is how much this
job has enriched my life – it is an ongoing learning experience and one has to
constantly keep up to date with the latest information.”
This ability of Judy’s to rise to the
challenge comes in especially handy
when she has to explain the sometimes
foreign, seemingly strange concepts of
kashrus, to the predominantly nonJewish staff with whom she works. But
this is where her training as a teacher
comes in handy, as well as her patience,
dedication and the mutual respect between herself and her staff, whom she
values highly. “The reason I initially did
the mashgiach course was to find a way
to find something that would improve
my financial situation. I’m hoping
teachers’ salaries have improved since
then, but now I see, and want the Jewish public to see as well, just how the
mashgiach is the backbone of any kosher establishment.”
There is no glamour behind the scenes,
says Judy: “It’s all very exacting and hard
work. If people think this is a job for people who otherwise might not be able to
find a job, they are very mistaken. It takes
a person of great integrity and commitment to be able to do this job properly.
The mashgiach needs to be there all the
time, from opening until everything is
sealed and locked. The preparations of all
the food needs to be done before the
function starts, as well as overseeing all
the general cooking and prep during service. We have to be available to the guests
to give relevant information about the
food, making sure the highest level of
kashrut is maintained at all times.”
And she also loves her work, despite
the long hours, which sometimes
20 JEWISH LIFE ■ ISSUE 85
means doing 17- or 18-hour shifts and
then being back early in the morning
for a breakfast function. “The best part
about working for a caterer is that we
mainly cater for simchas, my favourites
being weddings, brissim and the very
special 80, 90 and 100-year-old birthday parties. People often ask how I
manage to do this work and my answer
is that it’s all about simchas, which are
all really happy and special occasions. I
take great pride in not only making
sure that the kashrut is of the highest
level, but that all my clients’ needs are
seen to at their function, that they can
be at their happiest on their special day,
and I can share in their joy too.”
CHANA
WILLIS
Chana Willis is an
Israeli who has
been living in
South Africa for
many years, yet
none of the years
have managed to
soften the hard,
Sabra shell she wears on the outside, nor
dampen the soft, giving, compassionate
spirit she embodies on the inside. After
meeting her, it is this typical – and
somewhat stereotypical – Israeli-ness
that, for me, makes her work as a mashgiach (currently for Spar Savoy) so much
more inspired. Because, she says, it is
“very holy work – a high calling for those
highly capable people who take it seriously”.
They spend their time, over and
above the spiritual calling of ensuring
the kosher standards of the establishments are always up to scratch, navigating the different issues, personalities
and agendas which crop up every day
on the job, and often test one’s personal limits. “You have to be honest, with
yourself and with others,” she says, a
principle of integrity on which she was
brought up. “If I feel it is right, I will
fight for what I believe in, and facilitate
change and growth wherever I can.”
Chana, just being herself – a committed person with strong convictions –
shows a deeper reality of the mashgiach,
a position that requires knowledge, diligence, and constant character adjustment every day. You can never forget
your derech eretz when dealing with the
people on both sides of the counter – in
front and behind. And at the same time,
you constantly have to navigate your
role as the person in charge of kosher
quality control, a role that often places a
person on the potentially contentious
ground between the owner and the ruling kosher authority, the Beth Din.
But Chana is safe in the view that she
is someone who has to make spiritual
decisions for the sake of herself and indeed every patron who eats at the establishment, a reality of the mashgiach
which puts paid to the traditional view
of the mashgiach as someone who is
only there because they have nowhere
else to be, an outdated and untrue reputation that, sadly, some people still
hold. A dynamic, spiritual and growing
person, Chana not only loves what she
does, but is constantly bettering herself
in so many areas at the same time, from
immersing herself in davening and saying Tehillim, to studying for a degree in
psychology, all while balancing the never-ending responsibilities of being a
full-time wife and mother of three.
“The whole of life is like school – you
are always learning and growing; and
you have to push forward all the time.
And when one receives so much from
Hashem, because, at the end of the day,
each and every single thing is from
Hashem, all of the blessing and happiness that He gives you every day, as
well as the challenges and the tools to
get through them, you have to go the
extra mile in return.”
And Chana does just this in everything she can, and loves what she does
at the same time. Her inspired, happy
character shines through from the back
of the kitchen to her cu