Bryce Anthony Fluellen

Bryce Anthony Fluellen, 53, of the Northridge neighborhood of Los Angeles, who was a master chef, food justice advocate, entrepreneur, and author, died on January 1, 2024.

Fluellen dedicated his career to promoting healthy lifestyles and addressing the systemic barriers that can make healthy eating and exercise a challenge for people in underserved communities. He touched the lives of thousands of individuals along the way.

Most recently, Fluellen was the president and CEO of Arthur Lee Consulting & Advisory, a Los-Angeles-based social impact firm named after his late father that was focused on food, health, and community development. "Every day, I am guided by the words of the late Dr. King, 'Life's most urgent and persistent question is what are you doing for others?' This quote fuels my mission, reminding me to keep pushing forward and making a tangible difference in the world," he told the publication Canvas Rebel in November 2023 to explain why he had established the firm. He was also on the executive committee of the Los Angeles Food Policy Council.

Between 2020 and 2023, Fluellen was the executive director of social equity franchise and philanthropy at Everytable, where he led the company's program that invested directly into marginalized entrepreneurs of color by providing them the opportunity to open Everytable stores with zero upfront capital or net worth. In the interim, he was named to Nation's Restaurant News' 2022 Power List of 50 influential people who are shaping the future of food service.

Previously, as Community Impact Director at the Los Angeles Chapter of the American Heart Association (AHA), Fluellen was involved in a regional campaign with the National Football League Foundation to transform and improve youth physical activity. He started at the organization in 2014 as a chef instructor for the Kids/Teens Cook With Heart Program. He also crafted a curriculum around sustainable basic cooking skills and nutrition for more than 9,000 children within the Los Angeles, Long Beach, and Santa Ana school districts. Additionally, he facilitated hundreds of workshops about the power of healthy eating to prevent disease, for parents, school administrators, business and community leaders.

Prior to AHA, Fluellen developed and implemented strategic programs at Starbucks and Magic Johnson Enterprises, where he held managerial positions. His many volunteer activities over the years included work with Penny Lane Foster Care, Careers Through Culinary Arts Program, and the Jack and Jill of America's San Fernando Valley Chapter.

Fluellen was born on August 25, 1970 in Ypsilanti, Michigan. He grew up in Battle Creek, Michigan, the son of U.S. government analyst Arthur Lee Fluellen and school teacher Marilyn "Mattie" Louise Fluellen, and older brother to his sister Jessica (ne� Fluellen) Davis. He graduated from Battle Creek Central High School in 1988. His son Bryce Savoy Fluellen was born in 1992. In 2005 he married marketing executive Kim (ne� Porter) Fluellen, with whom he had his daughter Laila in 2006 and became a father to her son Nicholas.

A passion for food and community was the throughline of Fluellen's life journey, from the time that he worked at a family-run, Washington, D.C. jazz restaurant while studying at Howard University during the late 1980s and early 1990s. Between 2006 and 2014 in Los Angeles, he operated a full-service caterer, YAMS Catering. It partnered with health-oriented organizations to educate people in Black and Hispanic communities about healthy eating. He earned his master chef certificate in 2012, studying at Chef Eric's Culinary Classroom (established by Chef Eric Jacques Crowley), where Fluellen also completed an Intensive French Cuisine training program.

Four years later, he shared parts of that journey in Food: a Vehicle for Healing: (The Fruitful Journey) Pt. 1. (2016) a self-published, autobiographical cookbook that pairs healthy recipes with family stories and inspirational anecdotes. Fluelllen also encouraged readers to pursue their passions with determination, despite the obstacles they may encounter. "There's a reason the root word for through is rough," he wrote. "In an attempt to do something significant in your life, there will be roadblocks, detours, stop signs, gridlock, and bumpy roads. The key is to stay the course and view this as preparation for your true destiny."

Fluellen is survived by his wife Kim Porter Fluellen, son Bryce S. Fluellen, daughter Laila A. Fluellen, son Nicholas K. Porter, sister Jessica Davis, and many loving relatives and friends.