Story by Brennan Hoskins
Photos by Carlee Hite
Every day, while Hilltoppers shuffle through campus, food service employees of various ages and backgrounds work to provide meals for all who approach their counters.
Raelynn Sells, a third-year political science major, is also a student lead, which she said is similar to a supervisor. Sells said she started working at Fresh Food Company in January 2025.
“I was planning on transferring schools, so I left my job as an RA,” Sells said. “But I ended up working here, so that worked out pretty nice.”
Sells said she was promoted to student lead at the beginning of this spring semester, which required her to train in every area of Fresh.
“They just started throwing me at all of the different stations so I could learn how to do everything everywhere,” Sells said. “They also trained me on how to handle people’s schedules, how to give out breaks and how to manage the kitchen and front of house.”
Sells said she recently moved to RedZone after its management offered her a raise. She said that although she is in charge of every employee, she takes a relaxed approach with the kitchen staff.
“My policy is just to let the back of house [kitchen staff] do what they do, because they know how to do their jobs,” Sells said. “That’s the one rule of working in food; you don’t mess with the kitchen.”
Sells said she will graduate a year early and plans on moving to Chicago so she can focus on making music. She said she is currently producing an album to release on her Spotify account, “Raelynn.”
Herschel Donan, a floor leader at Fresh, said he is approaching his 13th year of working on campus.
“It was August, 2013 when I started off in RedZone, and I worked over there for maybe three years,” Donan said. “Then I transferred to Fresh, and I’ve been here ever since.”
Donan said he held several different jobs before applying to work at WKU, and that his previous experience helped him adjust to the workplace.
I’ve learned a lot from them here, and they’ve learned something from me. They say an old dog can’t learn new tricks, but he can, because you learn every day if you pay attention to what you’re doing.” – Herschel Donan
Donan said that the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted both his personal and professional life in 2020.
“They decided to shut everything down, and I was out of work for probably a year,” Donan said. “I was trying to quit smoking, and I was almost there, but when COVID came up and I was sitting on the couch with nothing to do, I started again.”
Though he has been on medical leave since December, Donan said his duties as floor leader include restocking food and cleaning surfaces.
“I’ve been out for lung cancer treatments,” Donan said. “Everybody was talking about chemo and what it does to you, but I drove every day, back and forth, getting it done.”
Donan said he has trouble staying still and plans to return in April, even if it will take more time to fully recover from his treatment.
“I think I’ll be alright when I get back,” Donan said. “Just gotta do a little more moving around and get this breathing back down.”
Dinita “Louise” Curry, Road Trip America’s kitchen supervisor. Curry said she started working 40 years ago in the Garrett Conference Center, then moved to the Commons when Garrett was being torn down.
“I got here when they built this location and worked at Rising Roll for a while until they finished our transition,” Curry said.
Curry said she has been a supervisor for nearly all of her career, having stepped down from her promotion to manager once her son was born.
“You have to be on call a lot, and work long hours,” Curry said. “I stepped down so I could be home with my child.”
Curry said that when she is not at work, she spends time visiting her three grandchildren. She also said she sees the students at WKU as her “babies” and enjoys watching them grow up as they pass through her restaurant’s line.
“I get to see them coming in as freshmen and going out as seniors,” Curry said. “You get attached to so many of them, which is a blessing for me.”
Curry said she used to be nervous around others, but working in a leadership position helped her become more comfortable in social settings.
“You have to talk with people to get to know them, and get them to do stuff,” Curry said. “I guess that’s where I started talking to people and not being so shy.”
Curry said she regularly talks to employees of other restaurants in the Commons, including those from Eiffel Pizza and Panda Express. She said the food service community was important to her.
“I enjoy where I work, and I appreciate the people surrounding me,” Curry said. “Here, you have a support team that really understands and gets you.”