SCARBOROUGH — For Black History Month, Enclave of Scarborough highlights a hardworking dedicated woman who has demonstrated that by having a good attitude and loving what you do, anything is possible, Mavis Akpene.

This ray of light is a compassionate caregiver and entrepreneur who has worked at the Enclave of Scarborough since the building opened about five years ago, according to a press release from the assisted living facility.

Mavis says her favorite aspect about working with seniors is being able to see them happy and smile and being one of the many reasons why they do, and how much she enjoys taking care of so many people in such a friendly atmosphere.”

In addition to working at Enclave, Mavis also owns Mavis Food Mart, an African and Caribbean grocery store located in Westbrook. She said she opened the store so she could provide traditional foods from her country that wasn’t readily available at the time.

“When I came to Maine, I realized that people coming from my country did not have the foods they were used to eating and I wanted to help, she said. “So, I introduced them in my food mart starting with basic groceries, then soups, and even cakes. It makes me so happy to share my country’s staples and recipes with others, and for all people of all different backgrounds who enter my store. I love it when people come back to tell me how much they loved a recipe I gave them to try and that they liked it. This is one of the most important things to me about being a store owner is that people like what I give them and that they come back to share their food stories with me.”

Born in Ghana, a sub-region of West Africa, Mavis grew up with her nine siblings: two brothers and seven sisters. She enjoys life with her three children, two daughters and one son. Mavis’ current hobbies are cooking and trying new foods. She also enjoys reading and bicycling and she is a talented baker who creates spectacular wedding cakes. Mavis also she loves gospel music.

Mavis’ advice to the world is learning to love each other.

To those seeking to achieve the impossible she says, “follow your passions. Just keep trying and love what you do. If you love it, you’ll achieve anything.”

To visit Mavis and add a cultural zest of inspiration to your pantry, visit her at her grocery market and visit and like her Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/mavisfoodmart

 

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