When Cadillac’s After 26 Depot Cafe marked its first anniversary this past summer, it wasn’t just marking one year of serving up burgers and sandwiches—the date celebrated a year of advancing employment rights and opportunities.
As one of the nation’s only 501(c)3 restaurants, After 26 hires adults with developmental disabilities and cognitive impairment, where they work with job coaches to expand their skills. Modeled after a similar project in Chesaning, Michigan, called Junction of Hope, After 26 seeks to give its workers the opportunity for gainful employment—and the takeaway is more than just a paycheck.
After 26 Project board member Andrew MacDonald has a personal investment in the program: His sister, Mary Elizabeth MacDonald, worked at Junction of Hope and has Down syndrome. We asked Andrew for the story behind this pioneering project.
