As a nonprofit, full service restaurant, Fig@Courtney's House provides job training and employment for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities. By giving them the opportunity to find and celebrate their strengths, we enrich their lives, the lives of their families and our community as a whole.
Our interns come to our program with a variety of goals - some are seeking a positive experience, a connection to their community and a chance to gain social skills that will help their everyday lives; others have a set a goal of future employment, increasing their independence and feeling of self-worth. Regardless of their ultimate goals, our job coaches and cafe staff give every intern the support they each need to end every shift feeling successful. Interns and staff work side by side, establishing bonds of co-workers and friends.
Several of our interns have expressed the desire to seek employment within our cafe at the end of their training - and more than anything, we want to make that happen. With the level of support we provide and the feeling of camaraderie that permeates the atmosphere, Fig@Courtney's House is their safe space, their comfort zone. And our thought is...why would we not make it possible for that individual to thrive in their comfort zone? Adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities face numerous challenges every day - if we can be a place of inclusion, opportunity, encouragement and support, then once again, everyone benefits...those we serve have a platform to show the community who they are and what they can do; and our community, by patronizing the cafe, gets a chance for better understanding, bringing about systemic change.
We currently have one of our interns, Maggie, who is ready to move on to employment - and Maggie wishes to stay with us. As a nonprofit providing the vocational training free of charge to our families, we need to raise the funds needed to cover Maggie's wages for the coming year. Paying minimum wage, with payroll costs, we need to raise $6000 for each paid position we open up for our graduating interns.
Can you help us hire Maggie, so that she can have her dream job? We sincerely appreciate even the smallest of donations as we work towards our goal.
