Today we’d like to introduce you to Miriam Bekele
Hi Miriam, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
BekeleNutrition Story
With the birth of my daughter in 2007, I immersed myself in nutrition and wellness education and studied alternative/eastern medicine non-stop until landing in the spa/wellness industry. My knowledge of a wellness lifestyle and Eastern healing modules became my passion. I attained my certification as a practitioner in nutrition and herbalism. After working in the field for 7 years I came back to Atlanta and BekeleNutrition was born.
I am happiest when teaching and children are my favorite. They absorb and retain knowledge in ways that blow me away and keep me laughing and youthful. I started teaching gardening and nutrition education at Toomer Elementary when my daughter attended school there. CIS(Communities in School) supported me and gave me time with the children in 3rd- 5th grades to introduce them to new foods, make recipes, and explore nutrition in new and fun ways. This grew into me doing educational classes and live food demos in APS (Atlanta Public Schools) and camps educating underserved communities on ways to incorporate fruits and veggies into their children’s diets and working directly with the youth as well. I also hosted events in partnership with farms and other organizations with similar goals.
During Covid, I cultivated a small group of children and we volunteered at farms, explored restaurants for culinary immersion and lifestyle, visited museums, hiked, and did many science projects. I was blessed to continue to do what I love and get paid well, while also helping families in need of enrichment for their children that they couldn’t get at school. During this time I also went back to school to study Public Health and deepen my knowledge of the health crisis in this country to better serve the people who need it most in and out of the country. I continued and broadened my work with children and families and worked with an amazing non-profit in Clayton County that allowed me to educate and influence hundreds of children in gardening, nutrition, and wellness practices. Teaching meditation became my new passion and I completed a mindfulness course in the process.
When I traveled to other countries(yearly) BekeleNutrition would bring inaccessible foods, supplies, and education to schools and children and use the opportunity to engage and learn how children in other countries eat in and out of schools and how food plays a part in their unique cultures.
In 2022 a friend of mine from the island of St. Lucia serendipitously introduced me to Gracilaria (Seaweed/sea moss). He knew how health-conscious and aware I was and thought that connecting me with the farms and the superfood would create something special for the work I was doing. He was right! My newest and exciting venture, SEAEED- seaweed-infused beverages and gels was birthed in the Fall of 2022. Immediately I knew I had to share this healing gift with as many people as possible so I started making gels and selling them to friends and family in 2023 after visiting the farms and cultivation process in St. Lucia. Falling in love with the island, the seaweed culture and people. Back in Atlanta, I was invited to some events and festivals in the summer and ended up making a good profit with little real preparation or investment so I knew there was a market there. I decided to grow the brand and created beverages to promote the superfood to a broader audience. Today I am finishing up school, getting ready to send my daughter off to college in a year, and scaling my business daily. I am currently selling online and at two different farmer’s markets on the weekend. SEAEED will grow tremendously within the next year and I am just staying present and intentional in all the work I do.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Hah, of course not, being an entrepreneur and educator is HARD work. I didn’t start making money until five years into what I was doing and even now, as an educator, (like all educators) are still not paid our worth. You have to love what you are doing. It has to be your god given purpose/gift or else it doesn’t make sense. It can not be about the money. The money will come once the hard work has passed.
I would say the obstacles/struggles were lack of income, and working in a field that is not respected, funded, or honest. Healthcare and wellness have been a joke in this country, and even now with wellness trending, there are still so many layers to wellness, food security, and safety that the average person is unaware of. Our food, water, air, and products are poison and if you are not living intentionally to stay well, mentally, emotionally, and physically, you will be sick and in debt due to that sickness. The average person in this country does not understand how serious this problem is, or might know but not have the discipline or stability to sustain wellness. It’s why we are the sickest rich nation in the world. It is why I choose to educate children. With adults, you can only work with those who have a certain understanding, mindset/openness, or wellness lifestyle.
I have also been a single mother who chose to be a mother first, over a career. For many years I sacrificed where and what type of work I did to have more time to be a present mother. To have mental stability/health and emotional balance. I always understood the importance of this; it is a major sacrifice. This country’s culture does not support present parenting and career balance. I learned to live with little income and raised a human to value love, kindness, health, service, and education over money and material things. This is very challenging in this country.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about BekeleNutrition?
I think I summed up the business definition in the previous bio.
What sets me apart from others is my honesty, intentionality, lifestyle, experience, and knowledge. I have always been a knowledge seeker and the more I learn the more I educate. I am always honest with those who want to learn and listen. I live what I teach. I will not tell you to apply something to your life that I am not doing myself. I speak from experience and use my own experience as a reference and tool to better serve the people I help. I continue to push myself to learn, grow, and teach every day. I listen intending to find solutions and I learn, to apply these solutions. I do what I love and practice wellness daily to live peacefully, in sound mind and body. I strive to help others do the same. I live in my purpose. I am here to serve.
Do you have any advice for those looking to network or find a mentor?
This is a distinctive question for my journey. It honestly has been lonely. For most of it, I did not have a mentor or a community. When I started in the wellness industry there weren’t many people who looked like me; black women (that has changed a lot now). When I became a mom and chose to raise my daughter with a certain mindset and lifestyle I was very lonely in that as well. I learned to manifest things that I truly needed or wanted for myself after the most consuming parts of being a mother had passed. Once I went back to school, started working in organizations that did the same type of work, and now found educators who teach and think like me, my heart is full.
I am not lonely anymore but it took me a journey of healing and forgiveness to open up doors of love and community. The personal work has to be done first to be truly successful personally and in your career.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.bekeleboutique.com
- Instagram: @bekeleboutique @seaeed_bn
