WORDS Kelly Sanford
PHOTOGRAPH Amy Sexson
Our Noire Kitchen Sometimes, it takes an element outside of our control to spur us into pursuing our dreams and reaching for the things we’ve always wanted. This element can challenge everything we think we know, turn our lives upside down, and lay waste to years of planning. For people like Laures and Kadean Dockery, owners of Our Noire Kitchen, this can be the tipping point for something truly amazing.
“Our Noire Kitchen was unofficially on my mind for years,” Laures said. “I was unfulfilled and discontent at practically every job I’ve ever had. I constantly wondered what my ‘why’ was. How could I make an impact? I wanted to wake up on Mondays and actually look forward to going to work.” Then, one day, she randomly thought out loud to Kadean, “Wouldn’t it be cool if we had our own food truck?” Over the course of the time that followed, she would daydream with him about what they would call it, what kind of food they would serve, and what sort of equipment they would need.
The Dockerys’ pivotal moment came in the form of a global pandemic. The entire world had shut down, and like so many others, they found themselves in an unexpected situation. Kadean, furloughed from Disney after 13 years, felt doubt about his job security, and Laures, two months away from earning her MBA, realized any job opportunities this degree would offer were suddenly put on hold. “It was a strange time,” recalled Laures, “but I knew for the first time ever, my husband, son, and I got to be home together all day, every day until the world resumed. So we did things we always wanted to do, but didn’t have the time to.” This included turning a longtime dream into a reality.
Kadean was receptive but also apprehensive, with lots of technical questions about how it would happen. He worked at Disney for 13 years and hoped to get promoted. It is no secret that Laures is a massive fan of her husband’s cooking. (She even took a food photography class to better capture his culinary creations!) She believed in him so much that she was convinced he should resign if he wasn’t promoted by his next anniversary. “I told him he was too talented,” she said. Then, in March of 2020, the pandemic hit, everything changed, and Our Noire Kitchen was born. - CONTINUED ON PAGE 34 -
Photo by Laures Dockery havenmagazines.com
32
