Jim was doubtful. Over 60 and struggling to find work, he wasn’t sure anyone would give him a chance. He had started to worry about what his future might hold.
Then Jim found Stone Soup PDX.
The organization’s culinary training program, launched in 2018, along with its community meals program, which expanded in 2020, welcomed Jim as a participant. A kind man and a quick learner, Jim thrived in the kitchen. He became a whiz with a knife and bonded with the staff and fellow students. He worked on his baking skills weekly and would make hand-pies for the staff as a thank you. He told everyone he knew about the progress he was making at Stone Soup PDX, believing that more people should know about the program and everything it offers.
After graduating from the 12-week session, Jim was hired as the cook for a retirement community, where he prepared food for his peers and enjoyed their company. He learned a lot during his time at Stone Soup but has since moved on to working and helping the community in a different way.
A year ago, Stone Soup PDX found a new home in the Catholic Charities of Oregon building on Southeast Powell Boulevard. The site has an industrial kitchen.
And on June 2, the organization will celebrate the soft opening of its new café, located at another Catholic Charities site — Beacon at Glisan Landing, a permanent supportive housing community in Montavilla.
And so, two prongs of the Stone Soup PDX fork – providing kitchen training and preparing meals for people in need – are connected to Catholic Charities.
“We are so happy to have a partnership with Stone Soup,” says Kaleen Deatherage, interim CEO and executive director of Catholic Charities. “Our missions and approaches fit together perfectly, from deep respect for human dignity to diligent attention to detail that makes progress in life possible. Stone Soup nourishes souls as well as bodies.”
“We take people who have barriers to employment so they can have stable jobs and income stability,” says Ellen Damaschino, executive director of Stone Soup PDX.
A new cohort of 8 to 10 students begins monthly. The full training is 12 weeks, but if students need a job quicker, they can step out well prepared in four or eight weeks – and can return to finish if they wish.
Often, new trainees come from the very shelters and homes where Stone Soup serves its meals. Damaschino says the residents of Beacon will be likely candidates.
‘Our missions and approaches fit together perfectly, from deep respect for human dignity to diligent attention to detail that makes progress in life possible.’
-Kaleen Deatherage of Catholic Charities on a partnership with Stone Soup PDX
Students learn knife skills, safety and sanitation, but also how to show up on time, how to work clean, how to write a resume, how to look for a job, how to work with people and how to work with somebody who’s in charge.
The end of the training includes lessons in following recipes, adjusting to dietary restrictions, making large quantities and packaging food.
Who’s eligible? Any adult who is housed and who passes a background check.
Students receive a stipend – the longer they stay, the larger the check. They also get shoes, pants, and get help obtaining an Oregon food handler’s license. Upon graduation, students are given the traditional roll of knives – a portable tool bag of readiness for work. In addition, they get a letter of recommendation that lists the skills they have acquired.
A trained kitchen hand can do more than work in a restaurant. Damaschino says that schools, hospitals, retirement centers, hotels and casinos often provide steadier and longer-term employment than a restaurant.
Stone Soup thrives on a win-win. People need jobs, and the food industry needs trained workers.
The cohort system allows students to practice a vital skill for cooks: working closely with other people.
Some students have survived trauma and “there can be triggers,” says Damaschino. Staff are well trained in the dynamics.
Cohorts not only work together but share meals. That creates a sense of belonging and family.
While the training happens, Stone Soup PDX feeds a lot of people in need. On the first floor of Catholic Charities headquarters, Stone Soup PDX prepares 1,700 meals each week that are taken to shelters, group homes and other sites.
Damaschino calls the Stone Soup fare “healthy comfort food.” For example, there may be chicken enchiladas, but also vegetable enchiladas.
Matthew, supervisor at a site where Stone Soup serves meals, says it immediately became clear that the food is made by people who genuinely feel that those who eat it are fellow human beings.
“People worthy of being treated with dignity and respect, who deserve a nutritious, flavorful meal,” Matthew explains. “The meals are clearly made with care, and they make efforts to provide a variety of options not just with every delivery, but throughout the month. From the menu to the ingredients, they’re always fresh and never feel stale.”
Volunteers – many of them loyal long-timers — deliver meals to sites. That keeps costs down so the price of Stone Soup meals can stay reasonable.
“I had the pleasure of volunteering at Stone Soup PDX last summer, doing food delivery runs,” says Adam, a volunteer. “The Stone Soup PDX team was so kind and helpful throughout the entire process. There is nothing more fulfilling than being of service to one’s community and working with great people at the same time.”
Funding for Stone Soup comes from city and county contracts, plus grants and donations.
The collaboration with Catholic Charities is of “enormous value” as Stone Soup emerges from the pandemic and needs more space, Damaschino says.
Julia Granet, marketing and communications coordinator for Stone Soup PDX, said one of the guiding principles for the organization, inspired by the concept of Tikkun Olam, is to help people in need and support them in reaching the places they want to go—through good food, job training, and community connection.
The name of the organization comes from a folk tale in which a traveler begins to make a pot of soup from a stone then urges villagers to contribute ingredients to make the soup a bit better. The result is a rich and nutritious meal for all.