Life & Work with Nicole Derseweh

Today we’d like to introduce you to Nicole Derseweh.

Hi Nicole, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I started The Martha Project in honor of my late grandmother Martha ann, a nonprofit organization that provides high-quality plant based foods and human connection to the houseless community here in Los Angeles back in 2019. Originally it was a way for me and my friends to give back. As a Celebrity chef who studied at le cordon Blu I wanted to help restore dignity through food and feed the houseless community a meal any Angelina would easily pay $30 for in a restaurant. I figured we’d all get together, chip in for groceries and make some epic food then go hand it out. It was so beautiful and the volunteers were actually walking away feeling so fulfilled and warm-hearted that news of the organization spread until we became an official nonprofit and I found myself behind interviewed by Rachel Rey and also receiving “the shining world compassion award” from the supreme master Ching Hai all in the same year as we were Celebrating having served over 10,000 meals to our local LA houseless community. Since then the organization has blossomed and now not only are we providing loving connection and 5-star meals for our houseless brothers and sisters, we are moving into events for them providing them with a healing modality to help address the underlying issues that can often lead to houselessness, namely trauma.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It’s been a challenging road. Obviously when Covid hit, we watched a lot of recourses for the houseless community peel back and I felt more compelled than ever to ramp up our efforts and work overtime to care for those in our community who were the most vulnerable. Luckily we had a great volunteer staff including doctors and nurses who helped us create a safety protocol that allowed us to continue serving through the pandemic. Another challenge we face is funding. We can get caught in a vicious cycle of raising funds, then spending them on addressing the needs of the houseless community and then running out and having to start the cycle over again. It’s been so beautiful to be funded by the community but moving forward we are looking into corporate funding that will allow us to stabilize and continue to expand our services.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I’m an incredible celebrity chef and have had the opportunity to cook for so many of Hollywood’s Ellete. I specialize in all plant-based, whole-food cuisine and it really puts me in a niche and sets me apart. I have a cookbook out now on Amazon and in barns and noble called “the vegan ketogenic diet book” and am in the process of writing my next one. I’m really the most proud of my vegan lox recipe and I’m in the process of launching it as a food brand hopefully it will be in stores next year. It’s called “Love Lox” and it’s a plant-based solution to traditional salmon lox that helps save water and protect over 49 endangered species. I’m unique as a chef because I pour my heart and soul into all my work and people really feel the love in my food.

What matters most to you? Why?
The most important thing to me is spreading the message of Unity Consciousness. Introducing the concept that separateness is an illusion and that we are all truly connected. I believe that we are just not ok until everyone is ok and this understanding drives me to live from a deeper place of loving and compassion.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.themarthaproject.org
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/nicolederseweh?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@NicoleDerseweh
• Other: www.Nicolederseweh.com

Image Credits
Elowyn Gabrielle @lapechlife Eric Allen @ericallenphoto