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The following story was written by freelance writer Deborah Reid:

When Aaron Foster, a 2003 graduate of Niagara College’s Culinary Management (Co-op) program, talks about important teachers and employers, there’s warmth in his voice and a big helping of respect in his talk. It’s clear the ways they inspired him. He absorbed the essential mentorship lessons and let them carry him to this moment.

The summer of 2021 marked the beginning of an exciting period in a career that has taken Foster to distant places. He recently stepped into the role of Executive Chef at the newly opened W Hotel in Nashville, Tennessee. There, Foster is overseeing two restaurants by New York celebrity chef Andrew Carmellini and playing a big part in generating revenue streams of more than 30 million dollars. “Nashville is like a fresh beginning,” he said.

The young boy who watched his father making sausages with his buddies in a garage in Port Colborne also worked alongside his mother at her restaurant, The Mercantile Gift Shop and Cafe. “The best leaders were like my dad, who was very calm and methodical and took time with me,” he said. “Under those conditions, I excelled.”

Diagnosed with ADHD, Foster has always felt immature for his age. One of the reasons he likes cooking so much is because it keeps his mind active. “I tell people it’s like having fifteen movies playing in my head on fast-forward all the time,” he said. “But when I’m in service or in a high-pressure situation, I slow down and can see everything. It’s like a chef’s superpower.”

He has met young cooks with a similar diagnosis and does not shy away from talking about it because he believes in raising awareness and helping cooks feel less alone. By his example, they know international success is possible.

At 27, after an early career in great kitchens in Canada, Foster travelled to Bangkok, Thailand, to work as the executive chef of the Red Sky restaurant in the Centara Grand hotel. There he led a team of 25 employees with little knowledge of the language. He needed to prove his worth to the owners who wanted to be the best. Bold and courageous, his striving paid off. In his first year, an influential Thai magazine crowned Foster best new chef in Bangkok, and Red Sky, best new restaurant.

Next, he landed at the Westin Singapore, where under the influence of an exceptional general manager, he matured into a polished international executive chef of a prestigious hotel. Employee turnover statistics speak to his talent with people. When he started, the turnover rate was 45 percent, and it dropped to 13 percent in the five years he was leading.

For most people, 2020 was a hard year. But for Foster, his life was exponentially more difficult. His wife battled cancer. He left the Edition hotel in Miami Beach, Florida to be with her. “As a family, we went through one of the worst years of our lives,” he said.

Through it all, Foster looks to the people who taught him the best lessons about compassion, humility, and respect, who he now calls friends. They’re still there and they’ve got his back.