I am blessed to have a small and incredibly dedicated team. We all share the same belief in our products and truly aspire to help change the way America eats.

Make no mistake, we are not a company of triathletes, cyclists, marathon runners or extreme athletes… well, I’m not anyway. Actually, we’re just everyday people who want to feel better, look better and be better. We want to be part of something special and make a positive contribution to our society; whether it is promoting active lifestyles, sustainability, community events or our own individualism.

At our recent off-site visioning retreat, I was truly gratified to see how closely aligned the team is. I realized how much we all cared about each other and where we all see Somersault Snack Company in the future! We shared visions of creating a community kitchen and garden; having our products in all school systems throughout the nation to promote healthy eating, creating  a council of experts in culinary delights, health, fitness, and nutrition…and even relocating to Hawaii (after all it was a vision session!).  I’m happy to say in just the last few months, we’ve had the opportunity to start to build ideas towards these dreams, here’s a small sampling of what we have been up to:

1. Developed and donated a “plant a seed” program with California’s non-profit GrowingGreat. We had the opportunity to volunteer to build school gardens, develop nutrition lessons for the classroom around seeds and to donate seeds to community gardens throughout California
2. Donated and promoted numerous community events and causes throughout the country including one of the latest right here in California that touched our hearts; the Best Buddies Challenge:  Hearst Castle on 9/8.
3. Connected with RD’s and health professionals to spread the word about the Power of Seeds and to gain knowledge and insight into creating a healthier America.
4. Started a monthly office meeting where we share ideas to improve the company and an activity to get to engage in PLAY! A few things we’ve done as a team are a potluck luncheon, a hike to Tennessee Valley beach and a yoga class. What do you do at work to stay inspired as a team
5. Launched Team Somersaults Run Club – our community running team – to train for the next Nike Half Marathon this October. Some of us have never run at all while others have completed ultras, but we’re building our team to run and meet this great milestone together!

The opportunity to build something from scratch, with a great team, a great cause and a great product inspires me. Together we can all make a difference in making America healthier, happier and more fun.  That’s my promise to my team—let’s live well and work well.  If making people happier is called work … we just hit the jackpot.

Tags: healthy lifestyles, mission statements, Nike Women's Marathon, volunteering, work-life balance