Debbie came to New Door Ventures wanting something different for her life, but needed a road map and some directions. Debbie, a summer intern at Mission Pie through New Door’s Ally program, looked back on the last year of her life and emphatically stated, “So much has changed.”

Before coming to New Door, Debbie reflected, “I wasn’t in school and I wasn’t working. Back then, I didn’t want to work and I didn’t want to go to school. I wasn’t doing anything good or productive. I had worked an office job, but felt trapped when I was there. Office work is not for me--it was a dead end.”

But without other employment experience, Debbie was unable to find another job. “It was not a good point in my life. I was just going out almost every night with friends. I would be out all weekend, Friday night through Sunday evening.”

Debbie heard about New Door from a friend. Though skeptical at first of the mandatory weekly job classes, she now feels the additional support is what made her experience so valuable. “I liked it here [at New Door]. You didn’t just give us a job and let us go. You helped us better ourselves. You really put an emphasis on that. You guys supported us more than I thought you would.”

For Debbie, the real work experience at a reputable café also gave her direction. Debbie had known she liked working with food, but she didn’t have a way to translate her interest to paid employment. At Mission Pie, she did kitchen preparation work, mastered espresso drinks as a barista, and tackled her biggest fear: numbers and money. Debbie admits, “I never knew how to use a register until I got there, I had to talk to myself when I was typing things in, but they said it was okay and I really learned it by the end.”

Debbie’s hard work during her internship and diligent job searching with her New Door case manager paid off. A week after graduating from her internship, Debbie received a job offer as a prep cook at a newly opened restaurant!

After a two week trial period, the manager was impressed. “Debbie shows so much initiative. She sees what needs to be done and jumps right in. She’s a hard worker. It’s hard to believe she’s never worked in a restaurant before.” Debbie’s trial job has turned into regular employment on the weekends while she continues to take classes at City College during the week. She hopes to enroll in a culinary arts program in the spring.

Debbie feels like it’s a dream come true. She sounds hopeful as she talks about her future. “I now feel like I could totally do something. I have options. I have this opportunity that I never would have seen before working at Mission Pie in the culinary field.” When asked how it feels to go from office work to a kitchen, she laughs, “I’m happy now. I don’t feel lost anymore because I have a direction.”