Tola Alade-Lambo, Ferrara VP, shares her enthusiasm for volunteering with Lumity students.
Ferrara Candy is one of Lumity’s most committed partners. They host One Day Challenges, engage employees as STEM Talk presenters for our students, participate in our STEM Fair, and provide critical funding through corporate grants for our day-to-day work (not to mention the delicious Ferrara treats). We can’t thank Ferrara Candy enough during this season of thanks and giving!
We are particularly grateful for Tola Alade-Lambo, Ferrara’s Vice President of Quality, Food Safety, and Regulatory, and the lead on the Ferrara-Lumity partnership. Her enthusiasm for Ferrara Candy, her work, Lumity, and Chicagoland students is contagious! To celebrate Tola’s spirit, we wanted to share her thoughts in her words.
A love for terrapins, manufacturing, and Nerds Gummy Clusters!
“I was born in Nigeria, went to graduate school in Wisconsin, and did undergrad at the University of Maryland. I will always be a Terrapin! I majored in Physiology & Neurobiology but fell in love with manufacturing during an internship. I was amazed at all the steps that are taken to make sure food is safe for consumption. I’ve worked with baby food, coffee, pet food, ice cream, and confections. Ice cream fresh off the line is just life-changing. And, of course, I just love Nerds Gummy Clusters. They are very addicting!”
Supporting the local community
“I co-lead the community and philanthropy (now called Social Impact) council of Ferrara’s DEI (Diversity, Equity & Inclusion) work. We knew that we wanted to support the community where we work, and Lumity met all of our criteria. We especially appreciate that we can donate our time with Lumity. It’s just so energizing for our employees!”
An array of Ferrara STEM Talk stories and advice
“Ferrara has multiple employees who are Lumity STEM Talk presenters, and we just love it! There are STEM Talk speakers from our R&D, Engineering, Quality, Manufacturing, and Finance departments. Our head of marketing recently shared with students how to use analytics to make decisions. And one of our plant facility managers is just an outstanding STEM Talk presenter. He is so experienced and really helps students understand all of the leadership aspects of running an entire facility- P&L, safety, quality assurance, and more. In my STEM Talks, I like to share with students the importance of internships because that is how I got into my career. Sometimes what you envision a role to be isn’t the reality of it. It’s best to go and do and see what a job is actually like.”
Belief in Lumity students
“My personal favorite [of the Lumity volunteer opportunities] is the One Day Challenge. When you participate in these events with students, you know that our future is secure. At our recent event, students co-designed new products with 20 Ferrara volunteers and marketed their ideas to four Ferrara judges. When I heard their presentations, I was so inspired by their ideas. They’re mind-blowing.”
