Empower Chef Elizabeth’s Vision for Healthier Communities

Hello to my friends and family,

If you know my life journey well, you know I’ve had to overcome many challenges. I’ve had to navigate life primarily on my own, but I certainly couldn’t accomplish what I did without friends and family. In 2021, when I made a drastic change to my health, I was determined to help as many people as possible heal from their own ailments and chronic illness. I knew firsthand how difficult it was to find foods that followed an anti-inflammatory protocol by omitting all dairy, soy, gluten, refined sugars, seed oils, dyes, ultra-processed ingredients. I had to make my own foods to heal, but I had an advantage over most. I already had 30 years of restaurant operations, cooking and hospitality experience. Just getting off disability In 2022, it was the most challenging year of my life. I lost 6 people dear to me, including 2 cousins, a friend, my aunt, my mother and my precious dog Bogey. All of this when I was starting up my business. When my mother died in October 2022, just 2 weeks after I got my business license, I put on my big girl pants and channeled her strength. I made this business my sole purpose in life. Tree of Life Culinary is basically my child and I’ve been trying my best to care for her this entire time, but it’s been so difficult. First my ingredients are not cheap, like sugar, flour, butter, corn, peanuts, processed ingredients…all which cause inflammation and are contributing to chronic illness, such as diabetes, hashimotos, arthritis, heart disease, even cancer. I use dairy free cheese, grass-fed meats; wild caught seafood, organic ingredients. At the very beginning I was supplementing income by doordashing, selling recipe memberships and literally forcing people as they walked by to taste test my granola :) my first initial pitch was “want to try the best granola you’ve ever had? It hooked them but I had to make sure this was true and i believe it is!

After operating my first market, I immediately began noticing how many people were desperate for relief of their symptoms. So many people had allergies, sensitivities and autoimmune. Many battling cancer or wheelchair bound would visit my farmers market booth, expressing gratitude for having healthy foods readily available. Many would say “keep going, don’t stop…you are changing lives”. It’s these types of comments and the high demand for my food that would motivate me forward. I ended up growing to 4 local farmers markets selling my delicious baked goods, granola, juices, chia puddings, all the things that helped me lose 40 lbs and lowered my autoimmune symptoms. I then introduced my healthy meal prep to the community which is now available online. Keep in mind, this is all in just 2.5 years.

I was speaking to the SBA about growing my company when another tragedy happened, my father fell beginning of this year and broke his hip. I was unable to talk to him the last 3 months of his life, but I know he was super proud of me. He himself was a businessman and loved hearing about my growth, offering valuable business advice. He passed in March and I’ve been devastated. If you know my entire journey, you are aware of what my father meant to me. Just like when my mom died, I had to keep going and pay my bills, so I haven’t been able to grieve properly. My father and I shared a passion for helping others so I’ve channeled both he and my mother every day. I plan on carrying out my fathers legacy of helping others..

I’ve decided to make my company “employee owned”. From the start my employees will be a part of its success. This will empower them to work their best and instill their own passion into the business. Therefore, I will need ambassadors, assistants, promoters, etc as we grow.

Soon I will create a Kickstarter and I am also working on that SBA loan. But for now I need a small push into this next phase.

Here are my goals for this first round. I plan on mimicking my own journey by introducing the granola to the local grocery stores. It’s important to have healthy snacks readily available.

* Add bar codes, nutritional facts and macros to all labels

* Upgrade signage at booths

* Apply to Sprouts, Whole Foods, Mothers Market, Irvine Ranch Market, local shops

* Complete my first recipe cookbook which will include basic healthy recipes that omit the inflammatory triggers of dairy, gluten, soy, refined sugars, seed oils. (If you donate on this platform you will receive a discount code for my first recipe book)

* Add more farmers markets to reach more of the community. This will entail more permits, labor costs and equipment.

Please help me accomplish these goals by donating anything you can to this project. Whether it’s $5, $50 or whatever you can afford, i would be so grateful.

Here are some other ways you can support me if you are not comfortable with this platform.

* visit treeoflifeculinary.com and order any items for pickup, local delivery or shipping to anywhere in US.

* Follow me on Instagram at The_Organic_Lizard or Tree_of_Life_Culinary and share my stories, posts, reels. This is free advertising and at no cost to you but it helps me tremendously.

* Send prayers and positive vibes to channel success and growth.

I truly feel that if we all work together on this, we will soon have my foods and recipes readily available all over the US. It’s my ultimate goal, to heal as many people as possible.

Thank you for everything, your support means the world.

God Bless,

Chef Elizabeth