Jody Burnett

Executive Chef

Jody is a Michigan native who discovered Lakeland while working for the Detroit Tigers. She was the personal chef for the visiting team that played the Tigers in Detroit, and she would travel to Lakeland each spring to cook for the players here. She ended up staying in Lakeland, first working at the Cypress Lakes 55+ retirement community before coming to Lake Gibson Village in 2017. In addition to her experience with the Tigers, Jody worked as a chef at French, Mexican, and Italian restaurants, and she also owned a catering business. She has two adult daughters who still live in Michigan—one runs her own psychiatrist practice and the other manages a health food store. Jody is very proud of her daughters’ success!