Meet the Team

Operations Team

These individuals support the day-to-day operations of our restaurant. They ensure that our mission of "delivering quality food, caring service, and a remarkable experience to our customer, to our colleagues, and our community" is being embodied, day-in and day-out.

Ashley Smith

Hospitality & Community Relations Coordinator, Serving Since 2022

Ashley joined Chick-fil-A Cheltenham with prior experience in the industry. She started her Chick-fil-A career at the Warrington location in 2012 as a team member and grew to become an assistant director. She made the tough decision to leave in 2015 to pursue her Bachelors of Science in Psychology while raising her family. During this time, Ashley explored different avenues but found her heart was drawn back to Chick-fil-A.

After graduating with her Master's Degree in 2022, Ashley joined our team. "Feeling a part of the team as soon as I started really solidified my decision to come back to Chick-fil-A. The support and family atmosphere is unmatched." Ashley brings vast knowledge and is passionate about exceeding the standards of the Chick-fil-A experience; focusing on hospitality and food quality!

Ashley hopes to one day own her own business . She recognizes that all the experience and knowledge she will gain through her growth with Chick-fil-A will positively impact her future.

Bryce Villarreal

Operations Manager, Serving Since 2021

In search for his first job after graduating high school in 2021, Bryce decided to join the Chick-fil-A team as we prepared for our Re-Opening. As a quiet and hard working team member, Bryce was determined to follow the "Chick-fil-A way". His dedication to doing things the right way made him a perfect candidate to be promoted to a trainer (early 2022). After helping develop fellow team members, he was soon promoted to a shift leader in late 2022.

When asked "Why Chick-fil-A?", Bryce stated "It's where I belong. The connections and continued growth just reinforce this feeling." While his growth is due to his hard work and dedication, he is thankful for Ziheem and Rachael for "guiding him right", answering any questions he has, and their continued coaching.

Bryce has recently been promoted to Operations Manager and hopes to continue with his steady growth. He is passionate about learning all there is to learn about the business model of Chick-fil-A, as he hopes to one day own his own business. In addition to being passionate about learning, he is also eager to share this knowledge to help build his team and invest in others, just as he feels he has been invested in. We look forward to seeing what he does next!

Getrude Nyanaro

Training Manager, Serving Since 2020

Getrude Nyanaro moved from Kenya to the United States in December 2019, and began working at Chick-fil-A shortly after (February 2020). With this being her first job, she started off as a timid team member, however she showed promise, as she was consistent and kind. Rachael Foix (mentor) saw the potential in Getrude and poured into her, helping her grow her confidence and abilities. By the end of 2020, Rachael pushed Getrude out of her comfort zone and encouraged her to pursue the next step of becoming a trainer (which she successfully obtained)! Getrude is passionate about making a positive impact on those around her and is inspired by her growth here at Chick-fil-A. She pays it forward by believing in others, and helping them grow into the best version they can be. She knows that no one single approach is right for everyone and is able to adjust training to give them the best opportunity to be successful. She states, "Chick-fil-A surrounded me with the encouraging positive relationships I needed to see the potential in myself and I just want to share that amazing feeling with everyone I can". Getrude is pursuing a degree in Business Administration at Montgomery County Community College, while continuing to grow with Chick-fil-A as our current Training Manager (2022).

Joseph Hooks

Operations Director, Serving Since 2017

Joseph joined the Chick-fil-A family in 2017, with this being his first job! During his high school career, Joseph was the captain of the football team, instilling leadership qualities early on. After graduating high school, he was soon promoted to a leader. Joseph's career stemmed from the constant support from Lawrence and Robin. He states, "They were able to see the potential in me, even when I couldn't". The opportunities for growth and investing from his mentors keeps Joseph on his path of continuous success. Joseph states that the most rewarding part of his job is the impact we have on the community through our relationships with not only our guests, but our colleagues as well! Throughout the years, Joseph has supported the team through it's tremendous growth in volume, record hours, and transactions. In addition, he was also part of the team leading us to our Symbol of Success award in 2019.

In his free time, Joseph is passionate about giving back to the less fortunate, a lesson he learned from his father, who always led by example. In 2023, Joseph's goal is to organize a food drive to support the local food pantries of Philadelphia.

Chick-fil-A Cheltenham has the pleasure of seeing Joseph grow from a playful team member to the intentional manager he is today. We are all excited at the potential of a second location to see what he does next!

Rachael Foix

Talent Director, Serving Since 2019

Rachael was in the restaurant industry for almost a decade when she decided to explore a different career path as a real estate admin. She soon realized that she craved the fast paced environment and being able to care for others through good food and kindness. With this realization, she decided to pursue a career with Chick-fil-A, starting her journey in 2019.

During her time with Chick-fil-A, Rachael has gained experience in every avenue of the business from Training and Operations to Human Resources. Rachael's thrives in a organized environment and has helped build many of the systems that are currently in use today at Chick-fil-A Cheltenham. Chick-fil-A allows for a career that suits both Rachael's strong organizational skills along with her people skills.

As our Human Resource Director she is dedicated to hiring individuals who fit the culture and helping them realize their potential. She is passionate about helping others grow, both personally and professionally. "The changes necessary for growth do not happen overnight and this can be discouraging at times. This is a natural reaction however, my goal is to reassure others that slow progress IS progress. Being able to recognize our wins and invest in our areas of opportunity is the most important part of our journey. Our effort is key."

Rachael is currently pursuing her Bachelor's in Business Administration and applies what she learns to help us continually grow in our day-to-day operation.

Tanner Foix

General Manager, Serving Since 2019

In 2019, Tanner met our operator Lawrence and decided to take the leap and join the Chick-fil-A team after dedicating almost a decade to his career with Coca-Cola. His decision to make this switch was influenced by the opportunity for growth and Chick-fil-A's reputation of culture, values, and faith. Tanner wanted to be apart of the change in influencing and helping others to grow.

Tanner began his journey as a Front-of-House Director at the Chick-fil-a in Royersford, PA, refered to this operator by Lawrence. In 2020, Covid brought constant operational changes and many challenges to Chick-fil-a's nationwide. Tanner and his team were able to navigate and adjust through these obstacles and maintain high performance team. Tanner was soon moved to the Store Director role.

In 2021, Tanner began working at the Cheltenham Chick-fil-a with Lawrence as Senior Operations Manager focusing on improving the Drive-thru, BOH operations, and controlling R&M costs. From 2021 to present our Food Safety score has improved to Elite level and Food Quality visits averaging between 95-98%. Tanner is currently our General Manager and continues to successfully lead our team as one of the top performing Chick-fil-a locations in the chain.

Ziheem Frisby

Kitchen Director, Serving Since 2018

Ziheem started with Chick-fil-A in 2018 as a hands-on team member, always willing to hop in and help anyone. His leadership journey started the same year (2018) as he trained to be a shift leader. His hard work and hands-on approach led him on the path to assisting in the kitchen.

As the kitchen manager (2019-2020) and with continuous mentorship from Tanner, Ziheem improved the performance of the kitchen drastically. These results led to his promotion to Kitchen Director (2021-2022). Ziheem’s most proud moment of his time here at Chick-fil-A Cheltenham would be obtaining a Food Safety Score of 1. He is grateful for the mentorship of Ms. Robin and dedicates his success to Tanner, who invested in one-on-one coaching, and personal development, while also providing continuous feedback.

Ziheem is motivated to learn and grow to provide the best for his two-year-old son, ZaaKai.

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