Arguably, the number one thing a human needs to live a healthy and happy life is fresh food. So why is fresh, sustainably grown food so inaccessible in the US today? My name is Soula G. Gianakopoulos. I'm from Fairbanks, Alaska (the Golden Heart City), where the winters are long and dark and the summers are light and wondrous. I have been homeschooled for all of my schooling, which has led me to have plenty of time for volunteering in my community.  I started volunteering at a local organic farm in 2020. From there, I was hired the following summer. I have now worked at Calypso Farm and the Ecology Center for three years and have been volunteering (mostly in the winter) for four years. Being a part of growing organic and healthy food for my community has had a life-changing impact on my life. It has also cultivated a passion for food advocacy. Sadly, our country has made quality-grown food severely inaccessible for anyone under a certain wage. Which is why low-income neighborhoods are typically lacking in organic produce or any produce availability at all. This angers me beyond words for so many reasons. For one, why are we making healthy foods quite literally not affordable? Second, people blame it on the job market or employees being lazy, but you know what I see? I see that the majority of low-income households are more often than not a minority group, and you know who does not like hiring minority groups, corporate America. So you blame it on others being lazy or having a low rate of job availability, but you sit there not giving a time of day to anyone who isn't a white, straight male, even if they aren't being "lazy." A part of my volunteering at Calypso was working at a local farmers market. Seeing the joy it brings people from all different backgrounds to have access to fresh vegetables and meet the farmers who grow them is one of the most heartwarming things I've ever witnessed. The true happiness that volunteering at this market has brought me is like the biggest rainbow you've ever seen, just bursting from my heart. I will never be able to express the gratitude I feel for the opportunity to be part of providing accessible, healthy, organic, and ethically grown produce to my community. And I strive to use my passion to make a difference.

Success is every mistake and every win from my past and every step forward and three steps backward in my future. Success is remembering I worked hard and gave it my all even if I didn't get the gold medal. I want my successes to be fueled by my dreams. I want to show little girls that our dreams can be our realities and those dreams can be our biggest successes. My name is Soula Gianakopoulos, I have lived in interior Alaska right outside of Fairbanks for my entire life. I have grown up on an organic farm in the hills of Ester. I am the only daughter to my very awesome parents, and the older sister to one younger brother. I have two dogs who are my best friends, and the cutest cat named Phoenix. I'm half Greek on my dad's side and have always felt very connected to that part of me although I don't look it. I have been homeschooled for all of my schooling and I feel very grateful for that, I was diagnosed with a learning disability in kindergarten and I don't think I would be the student I am today if I didn't have the education and understanding my parents have given me. I am a lover of animals, music, the outdoors, books, bananas, organization, art in all forms, Alaskan summers, my family and friends, cooking and baking, and I work to love myself as much as I know I deserve. Growing up on an organic farm and watching little seeds turn into beautiful and delicious meals from the point I could form thoughts has made an incredible impact on my life. It has cultivated my passion for food security and availability in the US, sadly organic and humanly grown food is not something that a lot of Americans have easy access to, and I would love to have a part in changing that through my dream of becoming a chef. Cooking and mainly baking brings me comfort, it calms me when I'm stressed, it makes me smile when I'm sad, it makes me laugh when I'm grumpy and most of all it makes me feel like Me. It has been my dream to work in the food industry for years and I am so excited to be following my dreams starting this fall. I would say I’m most excited to see my success flourish when it comes to my food. I can't wait to show people that food is so much more than just something that tastes good, it can change your life and I aspire to change lives with my food. Food can teach you so much about so many different things from cultures, people, religions, emotions, climate, and the world as a whole. I will be attending culinary school starting in August of this year 2024. I am a strong believer in following your dreams and being a chef has been mine for more than half of my life. This opportunity would make that a little easier for myself and my family to be able to afford the schools I am interested in. I am excited to see where my life takes me and most of all my success and how I will make an impact on the world with them.

I sometimes don't feel understood when I tell people I want to be a chef. because I don't just want to go on the Food Network or be some new Gordon Ramsey, I want to change people's lives through food. I want to tell stories with flavor, I want people to be excited to eat my food not just because it tastes good but because it makes them feel good from the inside out. My name is Soula Gianakopoulos, I have lived in interior Alaska right outside of Fairbanks for my entire life. I have grown up on an organic farm in the hills of Ester. I am the only daughter to my very awesome parents, and the older sister to one younger brother. I have two dogs who are my best friends, and the cutest cat named Phoenix. I'm half Greek on my dad's side and have always felt very connected to that part of me although I don't look it. I have been homeschooled for all of my schooling and I feel very grateful for that, I was diagnosed with a learning disability in kindergarten and I don't think I would be the student I am today if I didn't have the education and understanding my parents have given me. I am a lover of animals, music, the outdoors, books, bananas, organization, art in all forms, Alaskan summers, my family and friends, cooking and baking, and I work to love myself as much as I know I deserve. Growing up on an organic farm and watching little seeds turn into beautiful and delicious meals from the point I could form thoughts has made an incredible impact on my life and is one of the main reasons I am so enthralled with the world of food. it has also cultivated my passion for food security and availability in the US, sadly organic and humanly grown food is not something that a lot of Americans have easy access to, and I would love to have a part in changing that through my dream of becoming a chef. I don't live close to my extended family but every time we go and visit my Greek side my Nana and Theas are always making delicious Greek dishes and seeing the joy it brings them to feed family the food they grew up eating has always made me very happy. My dad in my opinion makes the Prasopita and is the person who introduced my brother and me to most Greek foods. I strive to feel the joy that radiates off of my Greek family when they feed people, and I hope I can make an impact on the people I feed with my food the same way they have on me. cooking and mainly baking brings me comfort, it calms me when I'm stressed, it makes me smile when I'm sad, it makes me laugh when I'm grumpy and most of all it makes me feel like Me. It has been my dream to work in the food industry for years and I am so excited to be following my dreams starting this fall. I can't wait to show people that food is so much more than just something that tastes good, it can change your life and I aspire to change lives with my food.