Sharette (she/her) graduated from FareStart’s Food Pathways Program in February. She recently joined us at Guest Chef Night to share her story, reminding us that FareStart students come from a variety of backgrounds and circumstances. Every story is unique. We thank Sharette for allowing us to share her story.
Good evening, everyone.
My name is Sharette. I am honored to have been asked to be your student speaker tonight. Typically, you would hear from a graduate of the program. I will be graduating on February 6th, so I am a soon-to-be graduate, guess that counts, right? But before you feast, I would like to share a chapter of my story with you.
For the first 17 years of my life, Seattle has been my home. It has been a place of both community and betrayal. Early traumatic events left residuals that were very hard to navigate at an early age. But I wouldn’t be where I am today had it not been for my elementary school counselor, who was the first adult to support me during those grim times.
The way my teachers showed up for me, they didn’t have to. They showed me that adults can be safe people too. Giving back, showing up and demonstrating love doesn’t really take much. And that is what I wanted to do… to give back the love that had been given to me.
When home was chaotic, school was peaceful. My teachers and counselor showed me what true love, care and support are. I witnessed and felt the good deeds of these adults in the face of my adversities.
Approaching college, I decided to leave Seattle and pursue my education out of state in Massachusetts. After hard work and dedication, I earned my bachelor’s in forensic psychology and my master’s in social work. I went straight into the workforce and pursued what I thought was my calling; being a social worker. In the decade I lived in Massachusetts, I explored fresh flavors of food, met new people, and tried to make it my home. I started from scratch, I took the initiative, and despite my best efforts, I recognized something was missing. Community.
When trauma begins to trickle in, having a community to lean on can make or break you. It catches up to you when you least expect it. It takes a toll on you physically, emotionally, psychologically and spiritually. I was dwindling and fading away faster than I realized. After ten years of living my life this way, I found myself more alone, disoriented, and unsure of where my future was headed. I needed to make a change and it felt like the right time to come home.
And so I did! I was looking forward to being welcomed back to my community with open arms. But when I arrived, things didn’t work out the way I thought they would.
I did all the right things, I kept my head down, my nose clean, and pursued a college education. But why was I still struggling? What else am I good at? I didn’t believe I was good at anything else. I struggled with my own sense of self, asking, who is Sharette? As I unpacked these questions, FareStart appeared.
Now, I’ve always had an interest in culinary. I mean, I love Gordon Ramsay as much as the next person, but I never thought of making it a career. I applied, but when I didn’t hear back, I just assumed that it wasn’t meant to be. But then one day, I received communication about orientation and a start date. My first day was November 17th. Now, here I am as a licensed social worker, not FareStart’s everyday student, but yet, they took a chance on me.
I have cried, I have laughed, I have yelled (not at people, but safety calls) and most importantly, I have learned how to believe in myself again. When I first entered this program, I was stubbornly set on stepping back from social work and pursuing a new career in the hospitality industry. But as my time here at FareStart nears its end, I have reconsidered my options with their guidance and support. I know now, so much more than before, how important my worth, my peace and my health are for me. So this will be at the forefront as I navigate re-entering both fields. Becoming a student at FareStart, I have discovered that I do belong in the culinary world as well. My love for the kitchen grew fondly.
Working alongside chef instructors with patience, witnessing and acknowledging my strengths made me realize I have a place here. FareStart has reminded me that I can dream again. That I have skills, I can make changes and that there are people out there who will support my metamorphosis.
If I could go back and do this all over again, I absolutely would. From the first contact with Sean (FareStart’s Student Intake Manager), to being matched with Jessica (my Case Manager), and to every staff member in between. To my amazing cohort, the journey we have walked on together has been life-changing. I couldn’t have been placed with a more phenomenal group of humans. FareStart has been so integral to my growth and potential.
After this experience, I want to do a casamiento (marriage) of the two. Both industries, human services and food, have inspired me. What I have come to realize is that the result of both is always the same: being witnessed, fostering connection and nourishing the body and soul, so it can become whole again.
If you take anything from my speech tonight, remember this. Typical student or not, my cohort members and I have experienced feeling disempowered, disenfranchised and discarded at some point in our lives. But we also have the ability to change that, to reverse the pattern and to end the cycle. And in order to do that, we need community. Community of all kinds: faith, friends, family and FareStart.
This is what FareStart did for me and many others. They believe in us until we believe in ourselves. And my God, they did that for me.
Thank you all for coming to support this wonderful program. Your generosity allows FareStart to continue transforming lives, like mine, so that we can, in turn, transform others. Buen provecho (bon appetite) as you eat this meal tonight, prepared by our Guest Chef and my amazing cohort. I wish you all a full (but not too full) and wonderful night.
