Bridgette Lacy knows her tomatoes. She was indoctrinated at an early age, when her grandfather would shower her family with plump tomatoes he grew in his garden. Come July, young Bridgette looked forward to tomatoes for lunch, dinner, and even breakfast. Fast-forward to Bridgette Lacy, popular features writer at the News and Observer in Raleigh. There she was introduced to the unofficial summer holiday: Mater Day. She’s been observing it ever since.

Bridgette Lacy’s story, “Mater Day,” was featured in the anthology, The Carolina Table: North Carolina Writers on Food, published by Eno Publishers. Bridgette is the publicist for Blair, a regional book publisher. She is a seasoned communicator, an award-winning journalist, and a publicist with a breadth of experience. She is former media relations manager for the North Carolina Arts Council and served as a longtime features writer for the News & Observer in Raleigh. She's the author of Sunday Dinner, a part of the Savor the South series by UNC Press. That title was a finalist for the Pat Conroy Cookbook Prize. Bridgette is a contributor to 27 Views of Raleigh: The City of Oaks in Prose & Poetry, published by Eno. She also is a contributor to All the Songs We Sing: Celebrating the 25th Anniversary of the Carolina African American Writers' Collective, which was published by Blair. Her work has appeared in Our State, Salt, and O.Henry magazines.