The 3 Pillars
There are 3 very important Pillars that make up the foundation of 2519 Soul Food and More.
Pillar 1: Food
Rich history from poor people; most all of us have humble beginnings and we are no different.
We believe that each and every day is a renewed opportunity to strive to do better
in this journey of life and this was taught at a very young age from our Mother Teresa ( REA ).
She taught her children to care about whatever they are involved in and to give your best each
day in all that you do. She had an ability to take a few items from her cupboards and create a
feast that the entire community enjoyed. This was due to her passion for food but most of all the
smiles she created and the satisfaction from delivering an experience and not just a meal. Soul
food is from the soul which means it runs deep inside of you; leaving you yearning for the next
time you could sit around eating with friends, family and or a business associate for lunch.
During our youth we had experienced this first hand with many delicious meals that you can still
taste and smell when you close your eyes. Our Mother was at the forefront of the company of
Red Lobster serving the central Florida community in 1968 until she passed away in 2002. She
worked tirelessly for 31 years not only for Red Lobster but catering for her Church and feeding
many of the locals delicious meals and desserts. With our Mother untimely passing just before
Thanksgiving we knew the glue to the family was gone but the legacy must continue. At that
time many family members continue to cook many of the family recipes although there has been
only one with the passion and love to cook and prepare meals for the family over the past 2
decades and that is her first born son; that is Executive Chef Bobby Jones. Chef Bobby picked
up the torch and firmly placed himself at the forefront of Outback Steakhouse as the kitchen
manager, Sous Chef for Talk of the Town Restaurants and the press box Chef for the Chicago
Cubs over decades of perfecting his own craft and putting his own spin on many of the dishes
we grew up enjoying. Bobby is a Chef that understands not just food preparation but delivering
the entire experience from barbecue to gourmet meals from the Windy City.
Pillar 2: Family
2519 the meeting place; this was our address of the home we grew up in where
all of those delicious meals were prepared but also time spent with our loved ones. We have a
saying of Family 1st which has been embedded in each of REA’s kids and the entire family.
Family can be friends of the family for years that have not only experienced a meal but shared a
laugh or cried with us when a loved one transitioned from this life to the next. Family is vital to
each of us and with the rich history and foundation to continue to build on that legacy and each
one teaching the next generation the love of family will keep the 2519 family together forever no
matter where we go in life.
Pillar 3: Fellowship
By definition it is a friendly association especially with people who share
one’s interests, activity, feeling or experience. It also means friendly in nature to all of mankind.
During our youth we witnessed this firsthand as many people, some we knew and some we did
not know were able to sit at our dinner table and enjoy a meal and a laugh with our Mom as well
as members from her Church and work family. The haves and the have nots, some well off and
some not so well off were all treated the same with kindness and respect. Fellowship is vital as
well when it comes to Soulfood as the two are synonymous to us. This is the key ingredient and 2519
has vowed to bring families back to the dinner table.
