Abby Pilla is always eager to cook or offer advice to family and friends alike.

A graduate of Johnson & Wales University in Providence, Rhode Island, where she majored in culinary nutrition, Pilla never misses an opportunity to pay it forward.

One of the ways the 2016 Marian graduate has tried to do that is by helping the student-athletes at her alma mater.

“When I got into college, I still remained connected to some of the coaches at Marian,” Pilla said. “When they heard that I was studying culinary nutrition and interested in the sports aspect of that, coach (Stan) Dakosty asked me to write a nutrition manual for the team. So I was able to work on that this summer, and I also made one for the volleyball team.

“So that was a big thing for me that kind of said this is where I’m supposed to be and I’m in the right spot with my career, and giving back to my alma mater means more to me than anything.”

But Marian High School wasn’t the only beneficiary of Pilla’s knowledge and expertise when it comes to food and nutrition.

Growing up, she worked at Skipper Dippers, which was owned by her dad, Joe, and later gained experience at Macaluso’s Restaurant in Nesquehoning.

Pilla, who loves shows like “Chopped” and “MasterChef,” enjoys cooking meals for family members, whether it’s mom, Louise, or brother and sister Anthony and Emily, who will lean on her for tips and suggestions.

Every summer she has returned home to Lake Hauto, and done a small catering service.

Due to the pandemic, she began “Mailbox Munchies” this year.

“It was something I wanted to do brighten someone’s day and put a smile on their face with my kind of passion,” she said. “I made Twix bars, little cookie dough bites, dark chocolate peanut butter cups, all homemade and healthy versions of them for family, neighbors and friends. I would then deliver them to their mailbox.”

That came to an end in August when Pilla began an internship as a Performance Nutrition Chef at the University of South Carolina. Her success in that position led to her recently accepting a full-time spot with the university to work as a nutritionist with the football team.

She recently headed back to Columbia, South Carolina, to begin her work in that position.

Although Pilla will have an extremely busy schedule and be located hundreds of miles away from the area, the ties to her alma mater and local community won’t be coming to an end.

“I still look forward to helping any way I can,” said Pilla. “In the fall when I was in South Carolina, I would get messages asking for advice or my feedback when it came to food and nutrition.

“That’s something I hope to continue to help people with moving forward.”