French Toast Bites creator Charisse McGill has died at 42

Charisse McGill, 42, founder of Lokal Artisan Foods (of French Toast Bites fame) and executive director of the Farmers Market Coalition, died unexpectedly on Monday, Jan. 15.

“Charisse worked tirelessly to create the company, which she has now left to her daughter, who will continue to run it in memory of her mom — with love and support from family, friends, staff and community,” said a statement sent by Kory Aversa, Ms. McGill’s publicist and friend, on behalf of Ms. McGill’s family. “There will be memories to share and for now the family appreciates all the love and support and condolences as they mourn the loss of daughter, mother and leader. They ask for time, compassion and grace in the coming days,” it continued.

“Charisse holds a huge place in so many of our hearts and she will be so deeply, deeply missed.”

Her cause of death is not yet known, Aversa said.

In 2018, Ms. McGill quit her job as director of special events at Valley Forge Military Academy to open her French Toast Bites food stand at Philadelphia City Hall’s Christmas Village. The fluffy, spice-sprinkled treats became an instant staple of the market, along with Ms. McGill’s sunny personality and infectious energy. She aspired to be “the Auntie Anne of French Toast,” she told The Inquirer that winter.

French Toast Bites’ debut was followed up by hundreds of appearances at special events such as the Roots Picnic, Made in America festival, and the Bronx Night Market. Demand soon led Ms. McGill to open permanent seasonal stands at Spruce Street Harbor Park — where she was the site’s first Black and female-owned business — Cherry Street Pier, and Eastern State Penitentiary, and a year-round stand at the Pennsylvania Convention Center. By 2021, she had furthered the success of French Toast Bites with a branded spice mix, beer, and coffee, tapping collaborators along the way.

The Delco resident’s presence in the food-business circuit earned her recognition among the wider Philadelphia community, including awards from the 76ers Buy Black program, United Way of Greater Philadelphia and Southern New Jersey, and the African American Chamber of Commerce of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware. Her story was featured on local news outlets as well as Forbes and the Today show.

Last summer, Ms. McGill was appointed executive director of the Farmers Market Coalition, a national nonprofit that advocates for thousands of farmers markets — a move that capitalized on Ms. McGill’s years of experience working with markets and food vendors. (She was the longtime manager of the Lansdale Farmers Market, growing the market from 22 vendors to more than 40 over six years.)

Even before she started Lokal Artisan Foods, Ms. McGill had a career that was wide-ranging. A Pittsburgh native, she earned a bachelor’s degree in sports and recreation management at Temple University. She worked with the 76ers, the Atlantic 10 Conference, and Special Olympics Pennsylvania before focusing on event management. She launched her own company, Ardent Meeting & Event Management, in 2006, working with clients such as the Pennsylvania Restaurant Association and Philly Neighborhood Food Week, a precursor to individual district’s restaurant weeks. She earned an MBA in food marketing from St. Joseph’s University in 2021.

Ms. McGill was a teacher. At different points in her career, she was adjunct faculty at Montgomery County Community College, an instructor in the School District of Philadelphia’s hospitality program, and a lecturer at Rutgers University. She also coached girls’ varsity basketball at Benjamin Franklin High School.

Warm and welcoming, Ms. McGill had major impact as an employer, with a dozen employees working at five French Toast Bites locations throughout the year. The majority of her workers were between 16 and 24, and Ms. McGill — a natural mentor — supported them with fair wages, professional guidance, and open communication.

“Every day they show up, they’re helping me reach my goal,” she told The Inquirer in 2021. She wanted to reciprocate: “What can I do to help you reach your goal?” she said. That summer she had held a mental health retreat for her employees at Yards Brewing Co., which brews French Toast Bites Ale. One of her employee’s parents called her afterward. “‘I don’t know what you guys did, but she hugged me when she came home and that don’t happen,’” the parent told her.

One of French Toast Bites’ employees is Ms. McGill’s own daughter, Madison, 18, who has already evinced her mother’s entrepreneurial spirit, or perhaps inspired it: In the mother-daughter duo’s Today show appearance, Ms. McGill told the story of Madison launching a lemonade stand at the Lansdale Farmers Market at age 12. “Baby, lemons ain’t local,” Ms. McGill told Madison, who responded that she’d use local fruits and herbs from the vendors to make a new flavor each week. “She made $6,000 in 14 days,” Ms. McGill told Today with pride. Madison loaned her mom much of that lemonade-stand money to seed Lokal Artisan Food and French Toast Bites later that year.

In addition to Madison, Ms. McGill is survived by her parents, Tina Jackson and Maurice Davidson, and other relatives and friends. Funeral arrangements and donation information will be announced next week on social media.