Friday Feature: Mary Mammoliti
Legally Blind Cook•On Air Food Expert & Host TV, Documentary, Radio•Kitchen Confession Podcast•Content Creator
Every Friday at Dwellability, we like to highlight community members and their amazing stories of accomplishment…
My name is Mary and I am a culinary expert, host on Accessible Media Inc (AMI), contributor for Kelly and Company, and blogger for Kitchen Confession. I live with retinitis pigmentosa.
Early Career
Mary was not always in the food industry, as she began her career as a financial analyst. But as her eye condition progressed, she found that she could no longer do her job anymore. “I felt like I was living a lie,” she divulges. Making the decision to leave wasn’t easy, but she explains that she felt like her eye condition made the decision for her. All she had to do was accept her loss of control in this area.
Instead of focusing on what she couldn’t do, cooking helped her remember what she could do. Mary always loved cooking, but she was never able to make time for it while prioritizing her career.
Dipping Her Toes Into the Food Industry
She began recreating recipes that she loved, by taking some classic childhood Italian dishes and putting her own spin on them. Soon, people began asking her for her recipes so she created an Instagram account. Things only took off from there, and soon she was opening up her own website and starting her own recipe development - Kitchen Confession.
A new day means a new hurdle in my life. For each hurdle I've not so gracefully leaped over, brings me one step closer to a happier healthier me.
My day begins with a positive thought. I like to call it my moment of truth. Where I take a few minutes to reflect on the progress I've made, gratitude for the sight I have and thankful for the opportunity to live another day filled with endless possibilities.
In addition to blogging, Mary is a TV Host of A Taste of Edmonton and Now We’re Cooking as well as On Air Food Expert for the Radio show Kelly & Company!
I've spent too many years pretending to be "normal". Fearing the unknown, predicting the worse out of every situation. I've realized that the "not so normal" me is so much more fun to be around. I've started my journey to Mary 2.0. A journey of feeling the fear and doing it anyway. Looking at the world through my eyes. I can't control the progression of my disease but I can control how I chose to live each day. So I smile and celebrate the little things.
If you're feeling down or the stresses of life gets in the way of happiness, SMILE! It always helps me 😃
S - see
M - miracles
I - in
L - life
E - everyday
Learn more about Mary and Kitchen Confession by clicking on this link: http://www.kitchenconfession.com/
Mary is also a disability advocate and speaker. She was also recently (This past Monday) published in Refinery29.
“Are You Blind?” Navigating A Socially Distanced World With A Visual Impairment
Read the article by clicking on this link: https://www.refinery29.com/en-ca/2020/08/9953679/social-distancing-for-the-blind-visually-impaired
As always, please share this newsletter with your friends and family. Also, visit our main website https://www.dwellability.com/ to learn more about Home Sharing for People with Disabilities…by People with Disabilities.
Cheers!
Jeff