Ria Paz Montes was born in the Philippines and moved to the United States at just six years old, bringing her heritage and passion for food to everything she creates.

Now recognized as one of the leading female chefs in the DMV, Ria centers her culinary approach on sustainability and community, prioritizing locally sourced ingredients that support and uplift fishermen and farmers throughout the Chesapeake region.

“Because we were immigrants, our family meals were moments for us to hold onto our culture. It is a way to stay connected to not only my culture but also my parents and grandparents, it is ingrained in everything I do, but especially in my food.”

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Tambra Raye Stevenson has a passion for showing others that food is about more than what we eat. She believes that food helps keep our traditions alive and helps guide the way we live and grow. She works to make sure Black communities have a voice in how food is grown, shared, and enjoyed while keeping cultural traditions alive. Her work is centered around building a food system where future generations can inherit both the land and the wisdom it holds.

“Food sovereignty is about reclaiming that narrative, restoring our rightful place in the food system, and ensuring future generations inherit both the land and the legacy.”

Leah Penniman’s work focuses on helping Black communities reconnect with food at its source, the land. Through farming, education, and seed keeping, she shows how growing food can be a way to heal, reclaim history, and build independence. Her work challenges a food system that has historically limited access to land and fresh food, and instead highlights agriculture as a way to preserve culture and strengthen community.

“…our big end game as Soul Fire Farm is to, as Black and Brown people, reclaim our inherent right to belong to the earth and to have agency and decision making in the food system.”

This Black History Month, we recognize how food can carry traditions forward and create space for connection beyond the plate. Chef Omar Tate uses food to tell stories rooted in Black history and lived experience. Through his cooking, writing, and public speaking, he highlights the importance of ancestral ingredients and traditional techniques in Black foodways. His work shows how food can preserve cultural memory, strengthen community, and pass knowledge from one generation to the next.

“I make food in ways that relate specifically to Black experiences and Black foodways and do so with respect to the agricultural traditions of Black people. I believe that food as art, as with any art, is a form of messaging and storytelling. I intend for folks to ingest love and knowledge in every bite.”

Our first Black History Month spotlight recognizes Karen Washington and her lifelong work in food access. Karen has spent decades working to make food systems more fair and rooted in the people they serve. Her work focuses on giving Black communities greater control over how food is grown and shared. This Black History Month, we’re highlighting voices like hers that show how food has always played a role in Black history and continues to shape the future of our communities.

“Food justice is not a passive movement. If you are actively working on food justice, you have to be actively dismantling the injustices you see. The injustices that fall along race, gender, land acquisition, land grabbing, job opportunities, wealth, etc.”