Growing up in rural America, Dennis Jones saw a concerning part of America that some people overlooked. When his family moved into the city and provided him with a private school education, he still saw the ravages of poor health across the economic and social spectrum.

After leaving the US Marines, Dennis’ health began to decline. His weight jumped to nearly 350 pounds, he developed high blood pressure, and became diabetic. Despite becoming vegetarian and losing weight for about a year, the lack of structure and guidance led him back to his old ways. A few years later, he nearly suffered a heart attack and was told he needed a double stent or bypass surgery. Neither option was ideal, and Dennis faced taking medications and making a significant lifestyle change. One day, while looking for a healthy plant-based restaurant, he discovered GreenFare, an educational restaurant offering organic, whole food, plant-based meals. There, he saw a flyer for Barnard Medical Center and the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, and on the spot, he signed up for the the 21-day challenge to improve his health outcomes.

Having faced his own mortality, Dennis woke up to making drastic changes.  He became a certified Food & Lifestyle Coach and Food for Life (FFL) Instructor and has not looked back since. Today, he teaches, coaches, and speaks about food because of a deep desire to improve people’s health and quality of life. Working under the guidelines of the American Diabetes Association, he also moderates a diabetes peer support group for the Barnard Medical Center. From rural America to cities and suburbs, Dennis has not forgotten his roots. He still considers himself a simple country boy from North Carolina, who loves his bluegrass, blues, jazz, classical, and occasional gangsta rap. When not working, he can be found doing landscape photography with one of his many film cameras. But most of all, Dennis loves seeing people get healthier and improving the quality of their lives.