Pictured above: Shanetta Edwards, middle, with her children, Amaranth, left, and Brantley, right.
Congratulations to Shanetta Edwards (aka Chef Netta), a 2021 Live Your Dream Award recipient, for earning her Master’s Degree in Nutrition Science from Meredith College. She also holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Food and Nutrition from Meredith College and a culinary degree from the Art Institute of Atlanta.
She says, “Long journey, yet it’s much sweeter when it’s complete.”
Chef Netta is a member of NCAND (North Carolina Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics) and co-chair of the IDEA Committee (Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Access). She recently joined the North Carolina Food System Advocacy Coalition and is Lead team member (Nutrition and Food) at The Garden at Spring Forest in Hillsborough. She is currently interviewing for Food and Nutrition roles, with a focus on advocating for Food Justice!
She also plans to continue her catering business, Netta’s Pantry (a mobile Farm to Fork concept), as she supports local farmers and feeding communities with nutrition rich foods.
Soroptimist of Raleigh has stayed connected with Chef Netta through the Live Your Dream Plus program, which pairs an awardee with a Soroptimist member to serve as a mentor.
Chef Netta had a lot in common with her mentor. They were both recent widowers, and despite their age difference, the mentor showed Chef Netta what the world would be like if she just took the steps to explore it. They would meet for lunch and discuss how Chef Netta was doing and how her children were doing. These conversations were important to Chef Netta because they helped her not feel like she wasn’t alone and the mentor reminded her to give herself Grace as all things will work out. Chef Netta said because of her mentor, she took the opportunity to travel to Italy with her dietetic internship, learning about their food, culture, and household traditions.
With our Live Your Dream Plus program, our awardees know that there is a network of women who are ready to help in any number of ways.
Enjoy Chef Netta’s recipe for Honey Sugar Cookies with Beet Icing!