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SOUTH CENTRAL LOS ANGELES – A native Angeleno who grew up in neighborhoods across the city from South Central to Inglewood to West L.A., Olympia Auset got tired of making 2-hour bus rides to find fresh food.

So she decided to do something about it.

What began as a small-scale solution to that frustration – affordably feeding her, her friends and her family, according to a June 2021 Sunset Magazine article – grew into what is now known as SÜPRMARKT, a low-cost organic grocery she founded which serves low-income communities in Los Angeles.

Those efforts, by extension, earned her the distinction of being recognized as the Rams' second community pLAymaker. Subsequently, Auset was surprised with a $5,000 check from The Los Angeles Rams Foundation earlier this week.

"I'm just processing everything right now," Auset said. "It was very unexpected."

According to SÜPRMARKT's website, 60 grocery stores serve the 1.3 million residents of South Central L.A. In Inglewood, it can be a 25-minute drive reach way or a 2-hour bus ride to to get organic groceries, for example. That kind of barrier, coupled with a climate of fast food chains and liquor stores that puts junk food above fresh ingredients, makes the area by definition a food desert – somewhere where nutritious food is difficult to obtain.

SÜPRMARKT has met that need and broken through that barrier by providing more than 70,000 pounds of organic fruit, veggies, and staples in South L.A. since its inception in July 2016. They are currently in the process of rebuilding their delivery system and constructing a brick and mortar store.

"Our mission is to end food apartheid in America by 2040, starting in Los Angeles," Auset said.

For Auset, inspire change means "to change yourself first" – an appropriate definition considering the roots of her cause.

"I think that's the most important thing that is important not to overlook," Auset said. "So it's really important to become knowledgeable yourself and go through transformation on your own, and then that allows you to create transformation in the world outside of you and around you."

Auset is inspiring change by addressing food insecurity head-on in her local community. Drawing from her own experience, she said the best way for others to do so in their own communities is to look at history the history of their city and their neighborhood.

"I think it's really important for people to dive deep and figure out what's already happened in the past, so they can make a better future," she said.

Know a pLAymaker in your community? Click here to nominate them!