If you know Nikki, you know you’re lucky. She has grown with our company from its wild days as a start-up to our steady-state small business with so much to offer. She is a light to those around here!

Get to know Nikki:

Tell us about you/your family:

“I was born in Ohio, I grew up outside of Bellbrook. I was out in the country but I went to school in Carroll in Dayton. I have an older sister and an older brother. Educationally, I went to Ohio University and studied Dietetics. I went on to become a registered dietitian and interned in South Carolina.  

I’ve been married for 23 years. Both my husband and I are from the area but I met him in college. We didn’t know each other here at all since I went to Carroll and he went to Centerville but his parents actually ended up moving a mile down the road from my parents when we started dating so that was very convenient. 

I have three boys: Rylan is 14, Brayden is 18, and Jackson is 21. We have a cat named Mo, she is 10, and we all love her. Jackson is in college, Brayden is going to be a senior in high school and Rylan is going to be a freshman in high school. They’re good kids, they keep themselves busy running cross country, and Brayden and Jackson have jobs. We like to hang out together and play games.”  

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How long have you been at Kate’s Plate? 

“I started when Rylan was in kindergarten and now he’s going to be a freshman so about 8 or 9 years. I’ve been here for a long time.”

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What is your life like outside of Kate’s Plate? What are some of your hobbies/interests?

“I keep busy with the kids. I run–that’s a priority for me because it’s more for my sanity than for running marathons or anything like that. I also take care of my mom, we lost my dad about 3 years ago, and she needs someone to help her with things so I kind of run her household as well as our household so I definitely keep myself busy doing that.”  

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Kate’s Plate supports the healthy eating side of wellness, what else do you personally do for your wellness?   

“I’ve always been very interested in healthy foods and eating healthy, that’s why I went into dietetics and nutrition in college. I try to incorporate a healthy lifestyle at home–I always include lots of fruits and vegetables and not a lot of fast foods or lots of sugary things during meals. I have always run and worked out and now I’ve seen my kids take up running. I think it’s because they’ve seen me do it and I’ve pushed them to try it. I have always hoped that being active helps and they’ve definitely seen me be active.” 

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What is something you want people to know about health and fitness?

“I think some people are too focused on the short end of health and fitness. They get caught up in fads and in doing the “quick” fix to get a result right away which makes it hard to maintain long-term. I think if they just focused more on a lifetime change it wouldn’t feel as terrible, stressful, or as restrictive. That’s what I incorporate into my life at home. We definitely eat ice cream and we get fast food and pizza once in a while but, for the most part, we still try to eat healthy. I think that is where people get misconstrued. The goal is a healthy lifestyle, not something restrictive.” 

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Is that why you joined Kate’s Plate?  

“It is definitely part of it. I was pulled to it when I saw that it was a healthy meal prep situation because I knew that it fit in with what I think and what I teach my kids that you can still have good stuff but it can just be healthy and not processed. That is what initially drew me to even apply for the job. Then meeting Kate was great and I loved hanging out here. The time frame was perfect because with kids it was very flexible so that was another plus.” 

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You joined Kate’s Plate when it was a little bit different than it is today, how was that like?

“It was good, it could be trying at times but mostly good. We would go into people’s houses and we would bring all the little parts of the meals with us and we would cook it in their house. It was fine but it could be nerve-wracking just with having to go into someone else home. I didn’t get to do it too long before things changed but I know other people who worked here and did it had some great connections with the clients because they had been working with them for a while. It’s funny though because when we did the transition there was a year probably when the transition was hard. When everything got up and running it was consistent and easier.”

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What are some things you like about the setup we have now and some things you liked about the setup we had before? 

“What I like about now is it’s great to work with everybody here. When we were going in the homes it was more isolated. I was only here for a little bit, packed up and went. Now, the relationships with the people that I work with are my favorite part of the job.  Before, it was more flexible. I could pick a time frame and go and come and go as I wanted or needed but it’s still flexible now too. I met some nice people when were in some of the homes so I’m sure there could’ve been more relationships. It was also kind of cool to see other people’s kitchens and houses–there were some very nice kitchens and houses!” 

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What are you looking forward to this year? What are some goals you would like to reach? 

“I am 49 and aging quickly, haha, so my goal this year is to spend as much time as I can with my family. My kids are getting older and I don’t know how much longer they’ll be around and want to spend time together before they get their own lives so my goal is to go on several vacations this year with my family and spend time together. Also to sell my mom’s house– that has been stressful in my life.”

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Your son, Jackson, has worked at KP on and off through the years, how has that been? 

“It’s been great. It started during COVID because he was a lifeguard and they didn’t have the pool up and running so I suggested maybe he could work here and Kate agreed so that’s when he started. It’s been a lot of fun! It’s been great having him here and getting to spend time together. It’s different at home when we are all together, at work I get time with him and get to see how he interacts with everybody else and see how fun it can be with him. I’ve gotten a chance to see him grow in the last 4 years and see his personality shine through more. Sometimes he is trying and pushes me. If Kate tells him to do something it’s one thing but if I do, not so much. But at least I know he listens to his boss.”  

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What is your favorite Kate’s Plate meal?  

“I always love the Chile Lime Chicken and the Cowboy Pasta!”