Quote:
SAN FRANCISCO -- In the eyes of many employers, James Flannery would be damaged goods.
As the lunch rush packs a tiny restaurant here, he stands timidly
behind the cash register, dressed in his red apron, fighting off the doubts that he will ever be able to keep all these orders straight. He avoids eye contact, convinced that every stranger is staring at him, laughing at him, assuming that he's somehow stupid when he knows that he is a very smart person who happens to be mentally ill.
For most of his 33 years, Flannery has suffered from depression. At
times, he has lain frozen in bed. The simple act of showing up for work can trigger a debilitating fright.
And so, to rejoin the job force, he has placed his faith in Cafe
Phoenix, a bustling eatery that opened last month.
At the Phoenix, almost all of the employees battle mental illnesses --from delusions and schizophrenia to bipolar disorder to paranoia.
To say the least, Cafe Phoenix is no ordinary restaurant. Workers
grapple with their problems under the watchful eyes of counselors while dealing with demanding customers, negotiating kitchen politics and juggling the never-ending flow of orders.
Cafe Phoenix is the newest venture by a Bay Area nonprofit called
Hire-Ability, which runs a host of vocational training programs for the mentally ill.
As the lunch rush packs a tiny restaurant here, he stands timidly
behind the cash register, dressed in his red apron, fighting off the doubts that he will ever be able to keep all these orders straight. He avoids eye contact, convinced that every stranger is staring at him, laughing at him, assuming that he's somehow stupid when he knows that he is a very smart person who happens to be mentally ill.
For most of his 33 years, Flannery has suffered from depression. At
times, he has lain frozen in bed. The simple act of showing up for work can trigger a debilitating fright.
And so, to rejoin the job force, he has placed his faith in Cafe
Phoenix, a bustling eatery that opened last month.
At the Phoenix, almost all of the employees battle mental illnesses --from delusions and schizophrenia to bipolar disorder to paranoia.
To say the least, Cafe Phoenix is no ordinary restaurant. Workers
grapple with their problems under the watchful eyes of counselors while dealing with demanding customers, negotiating kitchen politics and juggling the never-ending flow of orders.
Cafe Phoenix is the newest venture by a Bay Area nonprofit called
Hire-Ability, which runs a host of vocational training programs for the mentally ill.
Link to the entire article: http://cafephoenix.org/la_times.pdf
Link to Hire-Ability: http://www.hire-ability.org/
