FOOD IS a universal love language… one that needs no words. Memories are made around the fellowship of the table where love, laughter, and a sense of belonging comingle with the sweet aroma of our favorite foods. There, we are nourished by mind, body, and soul.
Robert Martin’s life is steeped in sweet aroma.
It’s a fragrance that rises from the kitchen of his childhood, where his mother, Jean Martin, spent her days feeding her husband, Bud, and their family of six children. There was always room at the table for one more; no one was ever turned away.
Martin said, “There were always people coming to us, spending the night or visiting, and my mom and dad always entertained them. There would be some kind of sandwich or coffee, or she’d brew tea and make a peach cobbler, chess pie, or something. Everyone loved Mama’s sweet tea. It was just a social center.”
“I learned from watching my mom, and my grandmother was an amazing cook. At one time, she owned a cafe here and in Uvalde, Texas. My father was a mechanic, and when I was five or six, I was trying to help him. He had asked for a 3/16 wrench, and I gave him a 1/2 inch. He yelled at me, so I ran inside, and my mom said, ‘You stay in here and help me.’ I guess it’s worked out okay, but I sure wish I had the mechanical skills my dad instilled in my two younger brothers. He was a jack of all trades,” he said.
Martin’s first job was at our local Hardee’s in the days before they served breakfast.
“At Hardee’s, I learned the urgency of customer service and following health department codes. I spent many years with Hardee’s corporate and worked for two other franchises. In 1985, I was awarded Manager of the Year and won several presidential awards, including a trip to Vegas. I went from line cook to manager, training manager, and a district manager there,” he said.
A season with Jack Palmer Food Service placed him in different roles and further immersed him in the food service industry. “I did a lot of multi-tasking there, from buying to assisting with the warehouse managers and office managers,” Martin said. “I also handled the credit department, setting up new accounts and dealing with delinquent ones.”
Martin grew in other ways while working at Palmer, too.
“While there, I joined the local chapter of the American Cancer Society and helped in their Hee Haw and Music and Memories shows. That was my first time fundraising for a cause. I served as a writer for the skits, participated in them, and sang a little. It was hard work but so rewarding,” he said.
All those experiences were essential as Martin and his wife, Trudy, opened their cafe, Sweet Aroma, in 2006 in Unionville. They filled the community’s hearts and stomachs until personal health issues forced them to close in 2012.
Martin said, “We made so many friends while there. You can make a lot of friends if you offer them a good meal and some hospitality.”
Martin stayed plugged into the community by catering at Homes of Hope and for dinner theaters at The Fly Arts Center. 2019 found him managing Koffee Beanz, bringing new life to its business and menu, even during the pandemic.
Seasons changed again for Martin in December of 2021, just as he was preparing for a total knee replacement. With the Shelbyville Community Soup Kitchen planning the opening of its current location on Cannon Boulevard, Martin was asked if he knew someone that might oversee the kitchen in their new dine-in facility.
“I pointed to myself and said, ‘Me.’ The rest is history,” he said.
In January, he began assisting with Tuesday to-go meals from the old Save A Lot property. He progressed to the new location, where he scheduled the volunteers and helped the groups prepare the meals while maintaining the kitchen’s mission. An average of 125 nutritional meals are served every Tuesday and Thursday, feeding the homeless and needy and assisting the at-risk population in Bedford County.
Martin explained, “We have a stateof- the-art kitchen and an inviting atmosphere. Like a popular gym, we are a no-judgment zone. We strive to be good stewards of what’s been given to us to oversee. I’m encouraged by the generous donations from individuals, businesses, and churches.”
The sweet aroma has come full circle from Martin’s childhood kitchen to the community table, each experience leading him back to where it started in many ways.
“It really is better to give than to receive. From cooking for [the] family to preparing meals for hundreds and even thousands in a day’s time, it’s not been easy, but it’s what I do. Chances are that you or someone you know at one point or another has had a biscuit, burger, or entree that I’ve had a part in,” said Martin.
What he’s learned in his years behind the counter gives him a different perspective on how we tend to respond to one another.
Martin said, “People are so overwhelmed and so busy in their lives, and the people you encounter daily, whether at a public restaurant or the soup kitchen, you never know what baggage they’re carrying that day or what’s happened to them before you met them. The ability to serve and please them is not something everyone can do—not everyone can try to make everybody happy; in fact, no one can make everyone happy. But you have to realize that the person who may be upset or angry at you is not actually angry at you. They’re troubled by something that happened to them before you met them. So the way you act and react to their situation can change them and make their day brighter.”
Can’t we all offer more grace and mercy? What a sweet aroma! GN
