Esther Iiyambo’s Story, Halloween Costume Contest, & Winter Party RSVP
Team Member Showcase: Esther Iiyambo
We, as a team at RAD in Redmond, would love to highlight and recognize our love and enjoyment in working with Esther Iiyambo. Esther joined Lavish Roots in early 2020 and has acted as “RAD Mom and Cheerleader” ever since. We asked Esther to share a little about what’s important about her and her employment at Lavish Roots.
Words from Esther Iiyambo:
I was born and raised in a small country called Namibia, which is situated on the southwest of Africa above South Africa. I speak thirteen dialects and languages including English as my second language.
Currently, I live in Redmond, WA with my four kids ages 8, 10, 12 and 16 years old. During my free time, I love to play basketball and soccer with my kids. Sometimes they teach me how to play video games.
I started working at Lavish Roots company in 2020 and I love my job so much. I have empathy and respect for all my coworkers. The days can be hard and long, but I still enjoy the ability to support myself and my family alongside people I truly enjoy working with.
In addition to being satisfied at work and loving what I do, the work gives me an overall productivity boost and my responsibilities motivate me enough to continue to enhance my performance. I am very optimistic, motivated, a quick learner, and get along with most of my coworkers. I am working with professionals that I can learn from, which is always a positive at any job. What I like the most out of my job is that we have a diverse culture from different countries, and we are all helping each other with our tasks. This is why I enjoy working alongside them, including how they cherish me and continue to motivate me.
Communication with my coworkers is also great and I feel comfortable about expressing myself when speaking English with them and I can say that this has greatly improved my English, although it is still not perfect.
I find my job is interesting, challenging and makes me love it. I always feel more engaged and fulfilled at my job.
Halloween Costume Contest
Please RSVP for the Winter Party!
RSVP: https://pp.events/a84mGE1E
Address: Lavish Roots Headquarters, 15320 Ambaum Blvd SW, Burien, WA 98166
Time: 2pm-6pm
Events: Games, Pictures with Santa, Giving Tree, Raffle, Bar LR, Turkey & Ham Giveaway (must register), & more!
Food and Beverage: There will be food and drinks!
Parking: There is no parking at LR.
Please do not plan to park at Lavish Roots. See Invite for parking locations.
Transportation: Lyft Code LAVISHROOTS2022 (See QR Code below)
Raffle & Food Drive: Each team member will be given 2 raffle tickets on entry. One additional raffle ticket will be given for every 10 cans of food brought in for the White Center Food Bank.
Giving Tree: A giving tree will be available to help the families at Mary's Place this holiday season. More information will be available at the party.
Our Partnership with Project Feast
In early September, Lavish Roots had the opportunity to welcome Project Feast’s Culinary School participants. The culinary program has been developed and is instructed by Kausar Ahmed, a fantastic PNW-based chef and instructor. The program is currently attended by a cohort of Afghan refugees focused on learning an applicable trade that each is passionate about – cooking delicious food, running a successful culinary business, and providing exceptional guest hospitality.
The culinary students we welcomed were provided with two overviews of the way Lavish Roots interacts with Meta Culinary in Redmond. Firstly, one group of students visited RAD Commissary Kitchen where they got the opportunity to see first-hand a “large-scale” corporate catering kitchen that fulfills production, execution and delivery of culinary services to over 10 campuses. Their eyes were opened to everything from how their skills will benefit them in the future to giant equipment that can make their jobs more efficient. Secondly, the other group of students were invited to work alongside our Front-of-House staff at a busy, Firefly café. The shared experience between our staff and PF students was awesome to see as they interacted and witnessed first-hand how their newly-learned skill sets can be applied in the real culinary world.
We are currently in talks with two current students for placement in Harvest/FOH positions once they graduate. It was a great experience for both and we hope to continue the collaboration by sharing “field trips” to learn more onsite at Project Feast’s headquarters as well as sharing these same shared experiences with the next group of students in their new year!
Written by: Chef Jeff Zanatta
