We recently had the chance to connect with Yasmine Charles and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Yasmine, thank you for taking the time to reflect back on your journey with us. I think our readers are in for a real treat. There is so much we can all learn from each other and so thank you again for opening up with us. Let’s get into it: What do the first 90 minutes of your day look like?
Excellent question!! I start my day with devotional reading, prayer, then proceed to 30 minutes of yoga stretch. Those small daily habits open me up and ground me for the rest of the day. I literally feel my own energy on the mat.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I’m a Haitian American chef, author, educator, food writer, and a U.S. Navy veteran. I’m known for my advocacy for homeless veterans and migrants. I draw on my own experiences with homelessness and resilience to help others. I love hot yoga and I used to play the violin. I’d love to pick it up again.
Personal journey:
I’m from Port-au-Prince, Haiti and I moved to America at age 12. I joined a blended family and I quickly became what I call “the appointed family garbage can”, AKA, the scapegoat. I hated how I was treated me and I was deported to Haiti by my the adults responsible for me at age 16. It’s very important to understand what happened to us and the traumas that shaped our childhood. Therefore, I’ve been transparent about my setbacks, family scapegoat abuse, my decision to leave the dysfunctional system, the importance of therapy to heal from trauma in order to become my very best, finding my voice, and ultimately choosing myself.
Career and education:
Military and culinary arts: I started my culinary career at KFC in Brooklyn during high school. After graduating from culinary school and working in a few restaurants in Manhattan, I joined the U.S. Navy as a Culinary Specialist. After graduating from Norfolk State University, I became a culinary and nutrition educator at Stratford University’s School of Culinary Arts in Virginia Beach and Newport News Virginia.
My brand and what I’m working on:
After leaving Stratford, I wanted to continue to grow as an educator. I launched a YouTube channel during the pandemic, Yasmine’s Cooking Show. YouTube gives me the opportunity to continue to provide culinary and nutrition education and fine-tune my television appearances. I’m currently in partnership with CBS 6 in Richmond Virginia. I cook on their morning show, Virginia This Morning. I recently completed an apprenticeship program with the Chef Ann Foundation, an organization dedicated to promoting scratch-cooking in schools. My experience in the food industry has made me realize that it’s much easier to teach children healthy eating habits than to teach adults to unlearn unhealthy ones in their hospital beds. The Center for Disease Control projects that by 2030, 50% of Americans will be obese. 1 out 3 Caucasian and 1 out 2 black and Hispanic kids will have diabetes in their lifetime because we have a broken food system in America starting from school food to food media. Many schools are welcoming professional Chefs with opened arms to change the way we feed children and I’m excited about being a part of the school food revolution.
What’s unique about me: I was stationed in Japan for 3 years with the Navy and living in Asia had a major impact on me as a chef. My culinary approach is a fusion of Asian and Caribbean cuisines, combined with a strong focus on nutrition and wellness. My cooking philosophy is “eat in color”, which emphasizes flavor-forward dishes that are also vibrantly healthy and nutritious. I recently discovered that I’m part Nigerian, Togolese, Ghanaian, and Malian, and I’m exploring and teaching myself West African cuisine.
Media personality: I’ve appeared on local television programs like Virginia This Morning, Coast Live, The Hampton Roads Show, and Living 757, where I demonstrate recipes and discuss nutrition. Good Morning America, The Tamron Hall Show, and Sherri are next!! I’d love to have my own cooking show one day on a major network to bring nutrition education in kitchens across America.
Author: In 2020, I published my memoir, The Cost of the American Dream: Diary of a Homeless Soul. It’s a chef’s story about food, trauma, resilience, and overcoming trauma. Most of my writing took place during deployments and it’s the military version of Eat, Pray, Love. Each chapter takes the reader to a different city or country around the world.
My Advocacy:
Since experiencing homelessness while attending Norfolk State University, I’ve become a vocal advocate for homeless veterans. I’ve collaborated with VetsHouse, a halfway house for homeless veterans in Virginia Beach and during the pandemic, I provided shelter and supplies to men and women I encountered on the streets. I’m currently working with Norfolk City’s Community Services Boards to address this socio-economic issue. The immigrant community has come under fire lately and I’m also an advocate for Haitian migrants.
Okay, so here’s a deep one: What was your earliest memory of feeling powerful?
I grew up feeling less than as a teenager in Brooklyn after I moved from Haiti and I felt my most powerful after running a half-marathon Naval Station Sasebo Japan in honor of Dr. Kings birthday. I was about 22 and I will never forget how proud I was of myself after crossing that line. It was my beginning of self-discovery.
What did suffering teach you that success never could?
Suffering forced me to look within and test my limits. Homelessness has taught me crucial life lessons like resilience, humility, perseverance, the power of asking, and showing empathy. Several members of the patriarchy have recently gone viral for labeling empathy as weakness, but they are the ones who are weak. Emotional intelligence is the new black in my opinion and I pity the privileged and those who have never had to go without because other than love, one of the most powerful emotions the human heart can ever experience is empathy. My ability to put myself in someone else’s shoes and feel their pain has served me well. Having empathy reflects the heart of the Creator and I strive to be just like Him.
Sure, so let’s go deeper into your values and how you think. What important truth do very few people agree with you on?
Being a single woman is a major part of my identity and decentering men and the male gaze has strengthened my relationship with myself. I grew up in a Caribbean culture that idolizes what I call the 3ms: men, marriage, and motherhood. I’ve been a bridesmaid more than I can count during my teens and I never envied the brides because there was something in me that always believed there was more to me as a woman than being a wife. The truth very few people seem to agree with me is that the institution of marriage and the patriarchy were designed to benefit and empower men, not women. Furthermore, the belief that a woman can find fulfillment, purpose, satisfaction, contentment, joy, and love outside of being an accessory and a supporting actress in man’s life is difficult for many to embrace because most of us women were conditioned to seek male validation and equate our worth with male approval and being chosen.
Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. What do you think people will most misunderstand about your legacy?
Most of us will leave a legacy through our children and their children because that’s how we’ve been conditioned. I think people also confuse legacy with money and a list of items they will leave behind for others. Legacy to me is about the impact and the contributions I’m making in society now, the lives I’m touching and the difference I’m making while I’m alive that will follow me long after we’re dead. One of proudest accomplishments is the publishing of my memoir, The Cost of the American Dream. Becoming an author means that I will continue to speak into the lives of others and empower future generations long after I’m gone just like other writers who came before me. There’s no misunderstanding here.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yasminecharles2000/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/yasmine-charles-53b10912a/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/yasmine.charles/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@Yasminescookingshow
- Other: TikTok:https://www.tiktok.com/@nourishwithyasmine
Image Credits
My photographer is Terri Simmons, owner of Terrilashae photography
Website: terrilashae.com
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
