CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Food is something that runs deep in Teshia Bailey’s family. 

“My father had a food truck in the '80s and '90s,” she said. “My great-grandmother down to my grandmother all were chefs.”

But her road to becoming a chef was filled with challenges, including a failed restaurant deal that pushed her to take a break.

“I had to climb myself out of depression, and it took me about six months,” she aid. “That’s when I came back full throttle right at the peak of the pandemic like, hey, I’m doing private cheffing and meal prep.” 

Bailey jumped from meal prepping for two people to 30 in just two months. 

And soon she decided she wanted to try something new. 

“I woke up from a dream and I was just like, 'hey, I want to start a food truck,'” Bailey said. “I knew the food bus would be the most affordable way to do it, and we just kind of took off from there.” 

So last May, Bailey bought a school bus, turning her dream into a reality. 

She has a variety of plans for her bus, including pay-what-you-can days, creating days to feed children for free and continuing to feed the homeless once a week.

“It’s funny, I woke up crying the other day because I’ve had this idea since I was graduating undergrad, so to see it finally become real it’s just like … wow,” Bailey said. 

While this journey has come with its fair share of struggles, Bailey is excited to finally take her love of food out on the road. 

Bailey says she plans to have the food bus out on the road by the end of April. 

She also plans to open another food bus featuring Asian cuisine around this time next year. 

You can see more on her renovations to the bus here.