Public safety workers make health their business

BY THE STAR NEWS – Vic and Kristina Reeves are used to helping people in their everyday lives.

Vic Reeves, 35, saves lives as a Chula Vista firefighter, his wife helps heal people as a nurse with Sharp Healthcare.

Now they want to promote healthy eating and healthy living through their new business, Vitality Bowls, a superfood café franchise that focuses on acai bowls. An acai is a berry high in antioxidants.

The Reeves said their experiences at their jobs made them realize they wanted to bring a healthier food option to Chula Vista.

“Working as a firefighter, I get to see people who are sick and unhealthy on a daily basis,” Vic Reeves said. “My wife actually sees more people than I do who are unhealthy, sick, diabetic and eating the wrong things, so we wanted to make sure people are putting the right things in their bodies.” read more

The first-time business owners are scheduled to open their doors at the Otay Ranch mall, directly across from the Apple Store, on Thursday, April 14. The store will be open during mall hours: Monday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Acai bowls may be the chief item on the menu, but the store will offer 15 different bowls, 10 varieties of smoothies, eight juices plus soup and salad. They will also have a kid’s menu.

Vic Reeves said all the food offered at Vitality Bowls is fully organic with no preservatives or yogurt filler. Prices for an acai bowl will vary between $8 and $13, depending on the size of bowl and what is added to the bowls.
Vic Reeves said the Otay Ranch mall serves as a perfect location for the store because people always use that mall to stay fit.

“We know a lot of people exercise around the mall from walking in the morning to all times of the day, afternoon and evening,” he said.

Owning a business has always been a dream of Vic Reeves ever since he received his bachelor’s degree in business administration from Cal Poly Pamona in 2003.

Kristina Reeves said it’s been about a year of planning and preparing for the store’s opening.

“We always look at our jobs as being so rewarding because we are helping people but it has been really rewarding for us to build this foundation of a business,” she said.

Kristina, 32, said because of their professions, it is important for them to stay in shape and eat right.

“For us as a family we struggle with finding really good places to eat that are healthy for us and our kids too,” she said. “That’s why we were so interested in bringing it to Chula Vista because we know it’s really hard to find those options.”