The beginning of my journey. My advocacy for "AH-HA" started years ago.

In 2010, I was a young mom, attending college while serving and bartending at an established pizza restaurant. As a server, one of my roles was to ensure our patrons were taken care of.

The guest's average stay lasted about forty-five minutes, and after they dined, paid, and left, I could quickly 'turnover' the table to seat another round of customers. The end of a busy night would line my pockets with tip money- as long as I ensured quick turnover at my tables and maintained stellar service.

I would look across the dining room to ensure families were content with their meals during that time. I often acknowledged that many families, who had come into the restaurant to eat dinner together, instead of conversing with one another for that short period, were more enthralled with their phones than with each other.

During this same period, I had many friends (and acquaintances), who, suffering from past experiences, had turned to drugs (vices) as a coping mechanism -- and overdosed.

As a busy, hard-working mom of two, it infuriated me that those with spare time couldn't see the benefits; of taking those small moments to be with one another.

As a person suffering from my trauma and throughout life had utilized my own 'vices,' I began to question the connections (and perhaps opportunities) we were missing to take the time to 'engage' with one another. How (if any) benefit could there be to the correlation of spending some 'undivided' attention on one another, even if it simply be around the dinner table?

At this same time (2010), Pepsi launched a marketing project called the "Pepsi Refresh Project." As I looked into my 'theories,' I discovered various surprising (and proven) statistics regarding the MANY benefits of eating dinner as a family, away from distractions, even three days a week.

Some benefits included the decreased rate of children who acquired eating disorders. The children whose families gave them (even a little) undivided attention a few days a week during dinner had a higher probability of not abusing substances or smoking cigarettes.

Kids had better grades in school. This was my 'Ah-Ha!', and The Dinner Table Movement was born.

I submitted my idea to Pepsi Refresh. My vision was to create a not-for-profit that provides suitable dinner tables, meal-prepping resources, and educational tools to families that cannot 'afford' the luxury, as for many people, a dining room table is just that.

I was stoked when I learned I had made it to the second round of voting... which was relatively short-lived, as it didn't make it to the third round.

And, like that, The Dinner Table Movement (much like the Pepsi Refresh Project itself) was shelved. Although I continued to believe in my idea's potential to impact society positively, I didn't know where to begin.

Sam