Lywana Dorzilor was born in Saint Marc, Haiti and grew up in Harlem, New York. As a junior at City College of New York, she is majoring in International Studies and History. Lywana has been interning with The Sylvia Center for the fall semester and is almost finished with her last couple semesters of college. After college, she would like to earn her Masters and work with an international organization that focuses on global health. She joined the Sylvia Center team as an intern because she believes in the organization’s central mission, asserting that access to and knowledge of health foods should not only be available to the privileged few, but to everyone. Lywana hopes to continue working in the health arena and learning from the work that The Sylvia Center does in New York City and Columbia County to instill healthful habits into the daily choices of young people. Lywana is a firm believer that introducing a healthy diet to children is a long term and sustainable goal that will make children healthier adults.
When asked about her favorite thing in New York, she quickly answered: her neighborhood of Harlem. Aside from Harlem, she loves the food of New York City and the ease of picking up any kind of flavor she craves.
In her words, “If I am in the mood for Spanish food I go to the Heights, if I want some amazing South Asian dishes I hop on the Q train and go to Jackson Heights, and if I want a taste of the Caribbean I either go home or to Brooklyn. In my free time I like to read, ride my bike, and hangout with my friends.”
Lywana also shared that her family has a big New Year’s celebration each year, “We eat Soup Joumou, which is supposed to bring good luck for the new year. The soup is so important. It’s thick and flavorful with squash, carrots and other veggies and is special for New Year’s! Everyone makes their own version. We drink Cremasse with Haitian rum and carnation milk.” In case you missed the recipe — read about Lywana’s holiday Soup Joumou from the Great Performances newsletter.
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