Success Stories
Michael’s Story (Age 19, Class 44)
Michael, a native Spanish speaker, faced many challenges before joining The Bread Project. He was a high school dropout and was becoming involved with a gang. Through our program, he gained exposure to workplace professionalism and learned the importance of safety and sanitation, dress code, attendance, and accountability.
Reflecting on his prior involvement with a violent gang, Michael said, “I used to want to be one of them, but after joining The Bread Project, I want to use my artistic talents in drawing and sketching to one day be a master cake decorator.” He completed his training and interned at our Café to build his customer service skills. With great personal effort, Michael obtained his first job, a part-time pizza maker position at Round Table Pizza. Also, he is taking night classes at the local adult school to obtain his high school diploma.
William’s Story (Age 58, Class 40)
William had just been released from San Quentin State Prison after serving a sentence of 8 years when he was referred to The Bread Project from East Bay Works career center. While he was incarcerated, he had worked in the kitchen, the most coveted assignment given to anyone serving time, preparing 6,000 meals at a time. This planted a seed for him to pursue the baking and culinary training program at The Bread Project.
In his graduation speech, he stated: “Probably the biggest thing that I got out of this was a feeling of accomplishment. I have given this class my full attention and completed the course. I feel good about myself and I am quite sure the rest of my classmates feel the same.” With this confidence, William found a job earning $12/hour. At the end of his 12 month follow up period, he was still working and looking to further develop his culinary career.
Lisa’s Story (Age 29, Class 47)
As a consequence of one mistake in her life, Lisa’s subsequent criminal record prevented her from obtaining a job. She was referred to the The Bread Project by the Davis Street Family Resource Center. Although she had previously worked in various industries, cooking had always been her passion.
While balancing her role as the primary caregiver of her two children, she overcame great hardships to complete the training. After graduating from the program, she earned her ServSafe certification and enrolled in Women’s Initiative for Self Employment (WISE), a local organization that provides resources and trainingto help low-income women start and grow their own business.
Recently, Lisa was a salaried employee at the NUMMI auto plant. Currently, she runs a catering business with on-going contracts with ABC KGO-7 TV station and WISE. With plans to expand, she is looking forward to hiring the next generation of The Bread Project graduates to help her grow her business.