Cedar’s Tsakirellis Tells Haverhill Chamber Members How Family’s Story Shaped Her Values

Aimee Tsakirellis, executive vice president of marketing at Cedar’s Mediterranean Foods, stands between Haverhill Chamber President and CEO Alex Eberhardt and Allison Dolan-Wilson, Northern Essex Community College vice president of institutional advancement and Chamber board chair, at the Greater Haverhill Chamber of Commerce’s 108th Annual Celebration. (WHAV News photograph.)

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Aimee Tsakirellis, this year’s Greater Haverhill Chamber Community Leadership award recipient, not only works in the food industry, she has a special place in her heart for feeding the hungry.

Tsakirellis, executive vice president of marketing at Haverhill-based Cedar’s Mediterranean Foods, said her lessons learned came from her parents’ own food insecurity. Her father was raised on a small island in Greece in a household without electricity or running water. His parents worked as cotton and potato farmers to support him and his siblings.

“He told me they had one chicken in their yard, and they would pray it would lay an egg they could share it for dinner,” she explained.

Tsakirellis’ mother was raised by a single mother in Lawrence and continuously moved between housing situations throughout her childhood because they could not make rent. She too faced food insecurity.

“Fridays were the special night because the family would split a pizza, double cutting each slice to make it feel like they had more food than they did,” she said.

When her father’s family immigrated to Haverhill in the ‘70s, they found better opportunities to support themselves and build a life of security. Tsakirellis detailed how her family’s story impacted her desire to serve her community during a moving talk at the Chamber’s 108th Annual Celebration last month.

Now in 2024, many children in and beyond Haverhill still face food and housing insecurity. “My family worked hard to break the cycle and chased after every opportunity they could so that their children did not face the same plights and lack of necessities that they did,” said Tsakirellis, and it is because of her parents that she strives constantly to provide support for the children and families of Greater Haverhill.

Tsakirellis related a story told to her by Nomsa Ncube of Somebody Cares New England when she first shared her reasons for volunteering. “You carry your history on your back with you. It powers who you are and what you do.”

Coordinating product donation and coupon logistics, dropping off toy donations to Emmaus and hosting youth groups like the YMCA and the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Haverhill for “make your hommus” events are only a handful of ways Tsakirellis and her team at Cedar’s work to support the community. Tsakirellis said their work is empowered by Cedar’s company officers who approve funding, product requests and paid volunteer time for their outreach events.

In addition, Tsakirellis herself endeavors to serve her community. With the help of her husband, Sokratis, she has been able to start a dog rescue, create a weekly delivery route during COVID-19 to stock local food pantries, sponsor a retired donkey at New England Equine Rescue North and support the YMCA’s Legacy Gala to benefit the YMCA’s programs for those in need.

Besides Tsakirellis, as WHAV reported earlier, others honored by the Chamber were Haverhill Community Development Director Andrew K. Herlihy, public service award; Melissa Cerasuolo, community volunteer; and Haverhill Public-Private Partnership Director Allison Heartquist, Chamber director of the year.

North of Boston Convention and Northern Essex Community College were also honored with the Chamber Service award and the Visitor’s Bureau and Community Catalyst award respectively.

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