Greek American Restaurant Cooperative names scholarship winners

The Greek American Restaurant Cooperative in Park Ridge recently announced two scholarship winners.

The hospitality scholarship was awarded to Daniel Frank Militello. He has been working at 3 Corners Grill & Tap in Lemont since he was 15. He has worked as a host, busser, and server.

Militello is committed to pursing a degree in hospitality and with the dream of owning his own restaurant. He will be attending Michigan State University in the fall.

The culinary scholarship was awarded to Jose M. Garcia, who has been working at Paul's Family Restaurant in Elgin for 29 years. He started as a busboy and because of his competence, intelligence and reliability was trained to become a line cook.

Owner Elaine Apostolopoulos said, "Over the years Jose wanted to take on more responsibilities and decided to go back to school to get his culinary degree and we encouraged him." He will be graduating from Elgin Community College with a culinary degree in 2024.

The goal of the program is to continue to attract and retain talent in the foodservice industry.

The Greek American Restaurant Cooperative was founded in 1986 by a small group of independent restaurant operators banding together to receive similar pricing as national chains. To learn more about the member-owned alliance, visit www.garcpurchasing.com or instagram.com/gararestaurantalliance/.