‘The Dolphins gave me a big boost.’ South Florida sports teams score big in helping others
Banana pudding, pineapple lemonade, seafood gumbo and the Miami Dolphins helped Chazemon “Chaz” Fenderson, a single mother from Opa-locka, keep her fledgling catering business afloat when times got tough.
Fenderson, 43, was working at a medical supplies company in the insulin pump department. It was steady work, but she wanted to supplement her income to better provide for her two young daughters. So, she began waking up at 4 a.m. and cooking “Bizzy Breakfast Bowls” for her co-workers.
The bowls, which she sold for $10, included combinations of eggs, home fries, grits, sausage, bacon, and a biscuit. She made 20 a day and they sold like hotcakes.
Before long, she expanded her menu to include seafood gumbo ($15), banana pudding ($10) and pineapple lemonade ($5). On weekends, she would put her daughters in the back seat of her Kia Soul, pack the hatchback with coolers and sell her food at barber shops and hair salons from Opa-locka to Miami Gardens.
“Most barbers are on their feet all day and they need things in a cup with a large spoon so they can eat and go,” she said. “I had no culinary background, no license. I made $200 the first weekend and felt like the bees’ knees. Then it went up to $500, and I was like `I’m doing this!’”
In 2018, on the suggestion of Miami Commissioner Keon Hardemon, Fenderson applied to the Martin Luther King Economic Development Corp. program, which awarded her free access to its commercial kitchen incubator for one year. She also became licensed to do cocktails and catering and to operate a food truck.
She made $8,000 in two days selling her signature cocktails in Orlando at the Florida Classic football game between Bethune-Cookman and Florida A&M.
Her company, DrinksOnMe305, grew to a full catering service and food truck, but it nearly shut down during the first few months of the pandemic. It survived in large part due to the Miami Dolphins Food Relief Program, a multimillion-dollar initiative which hired minority chefs and caterers hit hard during COVID to provide meals for those in need through area churches and community centers.
In March 2020 she was ready to sell food at Jazz in the Gardens at Hard Rock Stadium, and COVID hit. She had already purchased thousands of dollars’ worth of food and had nowhere to sell it. Her entrepreneurial instincts took over. She set up a tent and grill on the corner of Northwest 27th Avenue and 119th Street and sold her food from March through May.
She got a $10,000 grant from Fiserv, which was helping jump start minority-owned small businesses during the pandemic. It still wasn’t enough. That’s when the Dolphins stepped in.
Dolphins work with local chefs, food trucks, caterers
The Dolphins’ program provided 1,000 meals on weekdays, continues to support the caterers/restaurants and has offered a few of them stadium kiosks to operate on game days.
Fenderson’s largest single-day job for the Dolphins was 1,500 dinner plates (jerk chicken, peas and rice, and black beans) distributed at Hard Rock Stadium for Miami Gardens residents and local church members. They also ordered hundreds of meals for Antioch Missionary Baptist Church in Miami Gardens. She says her business would not have made it without the Dolphins’ generosity.
“The Dolphins gave me a huge boost during the darkest time,” she said. “Working with a national brand like that really helped me. I have gotten lots of new customers from it.”
Last November, with the help of a benefactor who doesn’t want to be named, Fenderson bought a food truck. She has a contract with King of Diamonds adult entertainment club seven nights a week, selling food from 9 p.m. to 3:45 a.m. Friends and relatives stay with her daughters while she works.
“It’s more lucrative to work at a nightclub than during the daytime,” she said. “People coming out of there want hot pasta, quesadillas, tacos, chicken wings and fries, things that will get the liquor residue out of their bellies. It works really good for me, but I don’t want to be working all night long, so I’m looking into other ideas.”
Chef Herb Coleman of SEED Miami also partnered with the Dolphins program, and said it was a godsend.
Coleman, 59, grew up in Liberty City and Overtown, now lives in Kendall, and was a chef at the Dolphins’ stadium 25 years ago. He went on to own restaurants at Walmarts, sold them, and started a food truck serving veterans and staff at the Miami VA Hospital while the cafeteria was being renovated in 2018-19.
When COVID hit, his business suffered. He got a call from the Dolphins Food Relief program, offering him work preparing meals for the Barbara Carey-Shuler affordable housing complex in Liberty City.
Feeding people from Florida City to Broward
“That was our first drop, and we haven’t stopped since then,” he said. “Throughout the whole pandemic a lot of businesses really suffered. A lot of food trucks closed but we were so blessed that the Dolphins kept our people employed and, most importantly, we were feeding people who didn’t have from Florida City to Broward County.”
They served 200 to 600 meals at a time, typically baked chicken, vegetables, rice, and pasta. His staff of 12 remains employed with the Dolphins’ help.
Coleman said Dolphins owner Stephen Ross, president Tim Garfinkel and vice president of communications/community affairs Jason Jenkins “were a blessing” and now SEED opened a concession stand in the stadium.
“This is one of very few organizations that has that type of reach that truly put their money where their mouth is to help the community. It would have been an absolute disaster for us without them. They did a real mitzvah (Jewish word for good deed).”
Another caterer who benefited from the Dolphins program is Rolanda Benjamin, owner of Lovely’s in Miami Gardens. She does weddings and large corporate events, operates a food truck and runs the restaurant at 1806 NW 183 St. Her mother, Linda, who was nicknamed “Lovely,” did small catering jobs for friends from their home and Rolanda, 38, grew the business.
When COVID hit the Dolphins called and ordered large quantities of prepackaged meals to serve those in need. Lovely’s delivered meals door-to-door and to community centers.
“The Dolphins asked if we could do 500 meals, 1,000 meals and deliver here and there,” she said. “We needed that income to survive. We had dropped from 17 employees to four. The Dolphins allowed me to stay in business, pay my bills and keep afloat.”
She and her husband have four children, ages 2, 5, 12 and 14.
“The Dolphins have helped minority companies because now our names and logos are known,” she said. “A lot of people in the area didn’t know who we were. I grew up in Miami Gardens, down the street from the stadium, my mom is a Dolphins fan, so to work for that team means a lot to me and gives me credibility.”
Other South Florida pro teams are also deeply involved in the community. Here are a few examples…
Miami Heat doing drive-thru Thanksgiving
The Miami HEAT, HEAT Legends and HEAT corporate partners, and Feeding South Florida are teaming up to provide a drive-thru Thanksgiving meal distribution next month. This will be the 30th year hosting the Thanksgiving celebration.
The Miami HEAT partnered with the Miami Police Department and the not-for-profit organization, Dedication 2 Community, to provide training to more than 900 police officers with the goals of positively impacting interactions between law enforcement and the diverse South Florida community.
Miami Marlins helping Surfside families
The Miami Marlins and CITY Furniture launched the Small Business Venture Program in 2021 to identify deserving businesses and provides recognition and exposure through in-ballpark and game broadcasts, along with a $2,500 grant to address their largest needs.
The Marlins, in conjunction with the Miami Marlins Foundation, created the Marlins Surfside Relief Fund. Bruce Sherman, the Marlins principal owner and chairman, made a $50,000 personal contribution, which was matched by Anthony Hsieh, founder and CEO of Marlins naming-rights partner loanDepot, with a $50,000 personal donation.
The Marlins and partner UHealth (University of Miami Health System) are teaming up to provide access to medical care at least once a month for local families in need.
And the Miami Marlins has been regularly hosting food drives during the coronavirus pandemic, feeding thousands.
Florida Panthers broadening youth hockey base
In partnership with Boys & Girls Clubs of Broward County, the Florida Panthers Foundation created a Youth Hockey Scholarship Program to increase access, inclusion and diverse representation within hockey in South Florida. The scholarship program will cover the full cost of training, equipment, and practice clinics for 10 selected boys and girls ages 7-10 throughout their entire hockey journey (until age 18).
Also, the Panthers will host 15 South Florida sled hockey players for one of their final practices on Oct. 24 at FLA Live Arena before they represent the Florida Panthers at the 11th Annual USA Hockey Sled Classic presented by the NHL from Nov. 18-21 in Wayne, New Jersey.
The roster of players is comprised of men and women of all ages with a variety of physical abilities.
Inter Miami teams up with Special Olympics
Inter Miami teamed up with Special Olympics, MLS WORKS and ESPN to launch the Inter Miami CF Special Olympics Unified Team. The team is made up of athletes with intellectual and developmental disabilities and unified partners.
They got to meet team owner David Beckham, coach Phil Neville, and they will travel to Atlanta to play the Atlanta United Special Olympics Unified Team on Oct. 27.
Also, Inter Miami and AutoNation joined forces at DRV PNK Stadium to assemble and pack 2,500 comfort bags for cancer patients.
Earlier this season, Inter Miami fulfilled a final wish for 15-year-old fan, Patricio Ojeda, who battled neuroblastoma for two years and died on July 31. On July 9, the team signed Patricio as an official player for the day, with his jersey waiting for him in the locker room. An intrasquad scrimmage was organized in his honor and Patricio was made captain for the day.
Staff and players raised funds for his family to help with medical bills.
This story was originally published October 21, 2021 at 6:00 AM.