Good Food Jobs: Service Member Florita Coakley shares the inspirations, twists and turns that brought her to food

When did you know that you wanted to work in food?

I’ve just always felt right when I was cooking or baking or teaching about cooking and baking. The time I spent getting my undergraduate degree was to prepare me for law school, at the very least to prepare me to work in a law firm.  A little more than halfway through it, when I was too close to finishing to start over, I realized that I belong in a kitchen and not in a courtroom. I finished getting my undergraduate degree in legal studies, figuring I could always go back to school to get involved with cooking, food, and hospitality. After a few heartbreaks, disappointments, and dead ends, I ended up working at a summer camp with children and I really liked teaching kids about food and cooking. No matter what jobs I have had, it has always come back to food, cooking, teaching, and baking for me. The bonus and new-found love is growing food to cook and eat.

Click here to read the rest of the interview on the Good Food Jobs blog.