Shonley Horsford-Charles
She has always had a passion for food and cooking. Her inspiration came from her family as she watched her mom use fruits to make jams, jellies, and guava cheese. Twenty-nine (29) year old, Shonley Horsford-Charles of Belle Isle, St. David is currently a trainee of the Agro-Food Processing Level 2 programme under the SAEP Project.
Since graduating from the Grenville Secondary School all her pursuits have involved her passion for food and she has been engaged in the food service industry in some way. She has done job stints at the Cabier Hotel in St. Andrew, La Sagesse Nature Centre, Rose Eatery, and at Springs Pre-School as a cook.
Shonley, previously pursued a course in Commercial Food Preparation under the Skills for Inclusive Growth Project which was executed through the Grenada National Training Agency in 2012.
She finds it exciting working with fruits and creating different products. She told GNTA, that what she liked most about the programme was the practical element and in particular, the drying of fruits and learning all the interesting things you can do with fruits.
She is looking forward to being self-employed in the agro-food processing industry. “I have interest in creating my own stuff”. Her vision is to see a product that she has created on supermarkets shelves throughout Grenada.
Thirty-five (35) year old Lawrence Andrew has recently completed a programme in Crop Production under the SAEP project through the Grenada National Training Agency. Andrew who has a background in agriculture and has been employed as an Agriculture Extension Officer said the training has been an excellent opportunity for him to sharpen his skills.
Andrew recently completed his traineeship in Crop production at the Mc Donald College School Farm. He plans to implement what he has learned in his job as an Extension officer and to use his skills in extending his backyard farming, He’s hoping in five years’ time to be a large-scale farmer.
What he lacks in experience he makes up in passion. Twenty-year-old Dwight Mc Leish of Snell Hall, St. Patrick has discovered his passion for food. He is a recent graduate of the T.A Marryshow Community College where he pursued a diploma in Hospitality Services. Dwight told GNTA in an interview that his love for cooking was triggered by watching the matriarchs in his family, his grandmother and grand aunt, cook.
He felt encouraged to follow in their footsteps. Dwight is one of only two males in the Food Preparation and Cookery programme being done at the Grenville Economic Centre Under the SAEP project. He sees the programme as a good one and says he has enjoyed learning new things in the programme such as first aid and experimenting with new recipes.
His end goal is to find employment in the culinary field as a chef and ultimately open his own restaurant.
She has never known a time when she was not passionate about baking and food. Thirty two year old Kimmon Jones of Maulty, St. David can’t see herself doing anything else in the future but cooking and baking.
She says she likes to experiment with new recipes and techniques and although she has had family members as mentors, her passion comes from deep within.
Kimmon is currently a trainee in the Food Preparation and Cookery programme under the SAEP project. She sees herself in five years being self-employed and self-sufficient. Her greatest desire is to own her own bakery where she can create wonderful cakes and pastries.
