COVER STORY
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5
December 2011
M
ost students know him as the namesake of the Cedarville caf-
eteria, the man with a signature whistle who keeps an ever-
watchful eye on Chuck’s. Chuck McKinney is a Cedarville icon,
but few know anything about him beyond his presence pacing the caf-
eteria.
Though Chuck has been rumored to have attended Cedarville Uni-
versity, he actually graduated from Mount Vernon University in 1977.
He received a degree in church music and a minor in youth ministry.
Because of his musical background, Chuck said he used to be regu-
larly involved with chapel. He sang for chapel often, he said, but has
refrained in the past few years.
“Once you reach the age of 60, some of the talents you used to have
are less than what they were,” Chuck said. “So I can put that on another
shelf, from another life.”
Chuck’s love for music may be one of the reasons why he is con-
stantly whistling. He said he has only started whistling within the past
three or four years.
“I don’t really know why,” Chuck said, “I guess it’s my nerves. A lot
of times I’ll whistle whatever I was listening to on the radio when I came
in in the morning.”
When Chuck started college, he said he didn’t have music or food
in his career plans; he aspired to become a dentist. This dream didn’t
quite meet his expectations, he said, when he entered his first college
math class. The professor he had was terrible, he said, and although he
had liked math in high school, the professor really turned him off to that
field of study.
Chuck then decided to pursue education, but he said he didn’t feel
called to that occupation either. At that point, Chuck started studying
church music, where he ended up staying.
After completing a two-year associates degree at Mount Vernon,
Chuck said he was drafted in 1971 and spent 16 months behind the Ber-
lin Wall. He said he does not have pleasant memories from his experi-
ence in Germany. He said it “was not one [he’d] like to repeat.”
After completing his service, Chuck returned to Mount Vernon to
finish his degree. Besides playing varsity basketball for the university,
Chuck said he became a student manager for the cafeteria. Because of
that, he said, he formed a great relationship with the owner of Pioneer
Food Company, a relationship that allowed Chuck to secure his current
job after college.
While Chuck said he never imagined himself in his current job, he
said, “It’s kind of funny, but I’ve pretty much worked in food all my life.
My first job I worked at a Burger Chef which is like a McDonald’s, from
that I went to an Alber’s grocery store as a carry-out boy, then college.”
Chuck’s first year as the manager of the Cedarville cafeteria was
1980. At this time, Chuck said the cafeteria was in Tyler. The gym was
right next to the cafeteria, so the students could watch basketball prac-
tice as they ate dinner. It was just called “the cafeteria.”
He said the story of how the cafeteria got named Chuck’s started
with aprons. Around 1990, Chuck said he used to employ around 400
students. So he ordered a large amount of aprons from a company, and
they informed him that he could place a free embroidery on each one.
So instead of telling them to write, “The Cafeteria” he just told them
“Chuck’s.” It just caught on after that, he said, and the tradition lives on
to this day.
Chuck begins his day at 5 a.m. He arrives at Cedarville about 7 and
said he begins the day by walking around the cafeteria chatting and jok-
ing with the students eating breakfast and with his employees.
One of the first things Chuck does, he said, is address the comment
cards. He said he looks at every single one and takes them into consid-
eration.
Chuck said a huge part of his job is public relations. He takes the
time to converse with the occasional student or to handle any confronta-
tion in the cafeteria, he said. Chuck must also help keep his staff togeth-
er and functional. He takes occasional walks around the kitchen area to
make sure everything is working the way it should be, he said, and that
employees are doing their jobs.
Chuck said he eats meals with his employees. He small talks, jokes,
and also talks business with them.
But sometimes a slight issue will arise between students and em-
ployees that Chuck will deal with, he said. For instance, Chuck had to
mediate in a situation where employees had gotten a bit out of line and
were messing around a bit too much.
“I like to have a good time” Chuck said, “but the focus has to be on
the job.”
Chuck said he keeps in mind what he taught his children when he
trains new employees.
“When I raised my children, when I train my assistants, my favor-
ite thing to share with them is people will give you exactly what you’re
willing to except. No more. No less,” Chuck said. “If you let your kids get
away with murder, they’re going to get away with it. If you hold them
to the line, they’ll know where the line is. Same thing with employees;
if you don’t show them that it matters to you, it’s not going to matter to
them.”
As a manager, Chuck said that he has had the “good fortune in the
course of 30 years to develop a strong base of employees that are good
at what they do, so they don’t a lot of overseeing all the time – especially
my assistants. I expect loyalty from my employees, but I’m very loyal
back to them. I treat them fairly.”
Since Chuck does take his job seriously and the jobs of his employ-
ees, he may sometimes come off a bit harsh. But Patti Beam, Chuck’s
personal assistant, said that is far from the truth.
“Chuck is a neat guy,” Beam said. “He wants people to think he
The Man Behind the Whistle
By David Wright
“Chuck is a neat guy. He wants people to think he doesn’t
have a heart but he does. He absolutely does. He does a lot
of things that people don’t know about.”
Patti Beam
Chuck’s personal assistant
