Lead recipe development and team training for nutritious, shelf-stable WFPB vegan meals, incorporating systems development to streamline processes and optimize team efficiency. Oversee product testing, quality assurance, and sample preparation to ensure high standards. Collaborate closely with Marketing and Customer Success teams for product alignment, successful launches, and ongoing quality monitoring. Source premium ingredients and stay informed on food science and industry trends. Develop, maintain, and update SOPs, utilizing project management and systems development tools to enhance workflows and foster a collaborative, health-focused culture rooted in WFPB principles.

Educator translating nutritional and clinical concepts from medical curriculum into culinary education through theory, demos, hands-on practice, and service-learning within the Culinary Medicine Elective. Collaborated with chefs of diverse backgrounds to enrich curriculum delivery, achieving 100% satisfaction from the first 30 graduates. Supporting the expansion of the Culinary Medicine elective into a four-year Certificate of Distinction program, now with 1/3 of incoming medical students enrolled. Actively engaged in media outreach, community partnerships, and experiential learning opportunities through the UArizona Culinary Medicine Initiative to enhance student and community impact.

Collaborated with the Director of Culinary Medicine to launch an innovative culinary elective for third-year medical students, integrating nutrition and food systems into medical education. Translated clinical concepts into culinary theory and demonstrations, coordinated with diverse chefs to enhance curriculum, and expanded student learning through partnerships with culinary-focused nonprofits. Supported media outreach and guided students in capstone culinary presentations for school executives, contributing to future nutrition education initiatives for elementary and middle schools.

Blue Watermelon Project works at the community level of schools and school districts to rethink relationships with food. We do this by working with three key groups of influencers to integrate taste education and interactive programming into curriculum and everyday life.I am privileged to work with our monthly guest chefs, oversee kit packing, audit kit costs, and assist in the in-person Chef in the Garden Visits.

Carrot Cares was created to provide meal-support to non-profit organizations focused on delivering aid to our most vulnerable communities during the on going pandemic. It is our hope that our non-profit partner organizations can focus their existing funding on other vital services, while we provide them with safe meals made in a regulated environment. In addition to prepared meal support, we will also support these organizations by fostering conversations around nutrition and access, community cooking classes for all ages, and with focused effort on food security advocacy. In order to support this, 24 Carrots has partnered with The Wish Foundation AZ, a 501(c)3, to fundraise the support needed to consistently serve our Arizona communities.

The Citizens Toolbox, a grass roots initiative to empower and enable our fellow citizens to advocate for themselves and for each other. Launched in May of 2020, The Citizen's Toolbox serves to amplify our collective voices and project them upward for rapid reaction to existing initiatives with policy-specific conversations. Our first objective is to enable increased communication with our representatives and urge them to replenish the SBA/PPP loan fund and facilitated in sending over 500 letters to members of congress across the nation.

Owner, operator and creator of a Vegan market-maker restaurant, and first-of-its kind allergen friendlyrestaurant in the Phoenix area. Multimillion revenue generation over the 13.5 years of operations in twocentral cities of the Phoenix metropolitan. Consistent 15-25% revenue growth annually.- Developed and refined over years the operational backbone from inventory management,procurement, labor training, labor transition, change management, key personnel retention, resourcemanagement, etc.- Trained and mentored over 120 employees at various levels over the 13.5 year window.- Strategized, implemented and transitioned Covid-19 Pandemic Adaptation plan, which was rolled outin under 2 weeks from the start of the pandemic. The adaptation plan included digitization of the menu, online storefront, social media marketing, grant writing, media coverage, and acquisition of volunteer organizations for food distribution. 95% retention of target revenue through 2020-2021- Designed and developed Green business practices, with near zero trash generated from the pipeline. The restaurant was awarded 2021 Tempe City’s Most Sustainable Business award. The program included various initiatives including adoption of compostable silverware, composting of all food products, etc.- Opened new revenue streams including direct-to-customer, prepackaged, ready-to-eat items and over 20 pantry staples, and developed beverage and bakery product lines for wholesale clients. Further expanded our customer impact through in-house events, restaurant collaborations, catering menus, and over 26 festivals.- Digitized the operational aspects of the business through use of low-code technologies, which resulted in mobile-optimization of Inventory Management, Scheduling, Cash Management & Point of Sale integration

-Founder of the umbrella holding organization for 24 Carrots Café. -Led market research, authored business plan, created financial projections, and secured funding for 24 Carrots Cafe in August 2007. -Evolved the business model for 24 Carrots concept from juice bar to a farm-to-table food concept, supported by a fully developed bakery and beverage program.-Successfully expanded 24Carrots operations across multiple cities in the Phoenix metropolitan, while doubling the operating footage, enhancing the operating model, maintaining majority of the customer base, and advancing breaking-even timeline by over a year