This story was written by Ellen Clarke with support from Stone Soup.
David wears a Stone Soup PDX tee shirt every day as a reminder of the group that helped him start over. With an infectious smile and a unique perspective, he has a lot to be happy about. Since graduating from the nonprofit’s 12-week culinary program five months ago, he has been sober, found employment at Piccone’s Corner on NE Sandy Blvd, and will soon have his own apartment for the first time in his life. He is 53 years old and has lived on the streets since he was fifteen with periods of incarceration. He found more than a career and a fresh start at Stone Soup, he found a community.
“I was on the streets, I was going through it,” David says about his time before Stone Soup. He credits the program with saving his life.
“They took my mind off what was going on in my life and they allowed me to focus on something else…They helped me get through that really rough time in my life. If I hadn’t gone to Stone Soup, I wouldn’t be on Earth today. They helped me get off drugs and alcohol.” David said. He graduated from the program five months ago and is finally feeling stable for the first time in a long time.
Anna Josephson, director of operations at Piccone’s Corner in Portland, remembers when David found his way from Stone Soup to washing dishes at the restaurant. His desire to work in a setting with other people was very strong when she met him a few months ago.
“Anyone who works in a restaurant can tell you dishwashing is the absolute backbone of the operation; they need to be fast, efficient and pay attention to detail,” Anna said.
David told Anna that Stone Soup changed his life when they asked him what Stone Soup could do for him that would be most helpful. Being asked what he needed from the program, instead of being told, changed his entire outlook and he gained a sense of pride in being allowed to advocate for himself.
Like many Stone Soup participants, David has learned to prepare nutritious food for himself, an essential element of self-sufficiency and an individual’s physical and mental health. Now that he will soon have his own apartment and kitchen to himself, he’s looking forward to cooking with the skills he gained from Stone Soup’s culinary program.
“They taught me to pay attention to what I was eating and what went into it.” David suffers from a medical condition that requires him to have a modified diet, but it was difficult to know how to manage this before Stone Soup and while experiencing homelessness. “Stone Soup taught me the basics of a vegetarian and vegan diet and helped me to start eating in a better way,” David said. “They made me slow down and start tasting my food.”
Recently, David came in early to Piccone’s Corner to make biscuits. He is learning at his own pace and is set up for success. Anna says that David is one of the MVPs at the restaurant.
When David is having a hard day, he goes to Stone Soup. “I continue to go to Stone Soup on a regular basis. Stone Soup is where everything changed for me so I’m going to always go back to that positive foundation. I catch up and talk to different students and teachers. Now I’m in a transitional facility, in the next three months they’re going to give me my apartment. Because of Stone Soup I got a job and a housing program.”
Stone Soup provides the tools and a supportive community for a fresh start for folks like David. Support their work here.
This story was written by Ellen Clarke. This story was originally published on HereTogether’s Medium.