“Why We Call It Soul Food” tells the story of why southerners, especially African American southerners, call the foods we eat “soul food.” Dr. Willis discusses the emotional and physical aspects of soul food as it relates to our culture and history. She also discusses the bonds attached to the growing, nurturing and preparation of these foods as it relates to our culture and way of life in the South.
Dr. Willis is a native Mississippian. She grew up on a 200-acre working farm. As a child she had to learn how to cook for 15 brothers and sisters. She holds a bachelor of arts degree in social work with a medical emphasis and a master of education in vocational rehabilitation counseling and psychiatric and orthopedic concentration from Mississippi State University. In 2007 she earned a Ph.D. in theology from the New Foundation Seminary in Terry, MS. While married to an internationally recognized bluesman she traveled the world exploring and experiencing the culture and foods of numerous other countries, thereby learning to appreciate her own culture and history as an African American southerner. She discovered she had a great and unique heritage people wanted to know more about, especially as it relates to soul food in the South from an African American perspective.
Dr. Willis’ expertise on soul food comes from growing up on a working Mississippi farm where she learned to cook for a family of 15 brothers and sisters as a teenager. Her experiences traveling the world with her bluesman husband have given her a unique perspective and knowledge of other cultures, but more importantly, a better understanding of her own southern history and culture as it relates to soul food, which is valued and appreciated by people throughout the world.
First Regional Library 307 West Commerce St, Hernando, MS 38632-5:30pm
No Cost
Sponsored by First Regional Library & MS Humanities Council
For more information:
David Brown 662-429-4439