Meet Marmar Stewart | Entrepreneurship Development Coordinator, Refugee Women’s Network

We had the good fortune of connecting with Marmar Stewart and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Marmar, what is the most important factor behind your success?
I don’t believe in sitting around and waiting for someone else to do something. If you see a problem that needs to be fixed or an opportunity to make something happen, do not wait—make it happen.

I enjoy working for Refugee Women’s Network because I witness every day the success of women. Let me rephrase that. Success is not when you succeed as a CEO. True success is when you help others to succeed.

One of Refugee Women’s Network’s most successful programs, Chefs Club, my main responsibility, focuses on empowering women. I believe that women are the foundation of society, regardless where you are on this earth. The idea for Chefs Club came from women, was planned by women, and executed by women. Chefs Club has over 40 chefs from all over the Middle East, Africa, Asia, and Eastern Europe. Most are refugees; others are recent immigrants. In their former lives, cooking did not count as a skill, but now they are earning income, supporting their families, teaching their daughters that no obstacle cannot be overcome and that women can become economically independent.

The whole idea is to empower refugee women, especially from war-affected regions. We have been very successful, and without any advertising we are busy 7 days a week doing catering for private events, workshops, company gatherings, large organisations, schools, etc. On a weekly basis, we are also at many farmers markets, including at Decatur Baptist Church, Virginia Highlands, Emory University’s Farmers’ Market. We are also at Trucking Tuesday at Legacy Park in Decatur and also in many festivals in the Atlanta area.

I cannot take credit for the name or the concept , I can only say that no other job that could feed my soul like managing Chefs Club at Refugee Women’s Network.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
My position is Entrepreneurship Development Coordinator at Refugee Women’s Network. I guide women to work towards financial independence and to become future business women. Most of our chefs do not have any college background or formal training. They have been forced to leave their homelands and have moved here as refugees, to be confronted by a new, unfamiliar culture whose language, customs, and rules they are just beginning to learn. Most of these women did not have the opportunity to work outside their homes before, but they are highly skilled chefs, and we enable them to prepare traditional dishes from the cuisines of their homelands and to sell it at a number of venues, while also teaching them the technical aspects of running small businesses. We have Chefs from Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, the Congo, South Sudan, Kurdistan, Ukraine, and elsewhere.

I personally believe that challenges are there to overcome. If there are no challenges in your path, you will not learn to succeed. Challenges are what teach us new life skills. The great Persian poet Rumi said that a wound is the place where light can enter you. Fortunately, I have never been one to back down from a challenge, and I have been driven by faith that hard work and communication with others will pave the road to success.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I would encourage them to order catering from Chef’s Club. International foods of all sort are available, and we can take orders from 20 to 400 people. And don’t forget our baklava!

A fun way to learn about other cultures is to visit the International Community School in Decatur, attended by children from over 50 nationalities. They work hard to support. a diverse community.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I would like to thank Sushma Barakoti, the Executive Director of Refugee Women’s Network, for trusting me and giving me the opportunity to lead the Chefs Club program and to help empowering women.

We are having our 25th anniversary – fundraiser on November 2nd 2023 at Wimbish  house in ( Atlanta Women’s Club )

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