If you've ever been to Pacific Beach, you've probably been to Garnet Avenue. Garnet Avenue is a busy, palm-lined thoroughfare leading from the highway to the beach, and is home to coffee shops and bars such as Better Buzz Coffee, and dining options such as Mavericks Beach Club and The Friendly.
But one block south of Garnet Avenue on Hornblend Street stands a large brown and green building with brightly colored fruits and vegetables painted on its exterior. Some people familiar with it told NBC 7 they call it a “hidden gem.”
“You can always find what you're looking for,” says Pacific Beach resident Laura Thorpe. “If you come here and take a look, you'll find treasure.”
The name is “Kitchens for Good Shop''. As the team puts it, people can donate their “favorite” items at the store 24/7. We then clean, organize, and price the items. When ready for sale, it will join approximately 17,000 other items available for sale in-store.
“Shoppers can save half off prices that are already half off the retail price at Target,” said Mary Scafidi, Operations Manager at Kitchens for Good Shops.
It's these discounted prices that shoppers like Donna Brickford rely on.
“Kitchens for Good allowed me to start my business debt-free, otherwise I wouldn't have been able to do it,” Brickford said.
Brickford is the proud owner and head chef of Mama Greens, a newly opened small business home kitchen operation in San Diego. She was named after her grandmother, Arlene Green. She spent months visiting Kitchens for Good Shop trying to buy all the kitchen supplies she needed.
“I remember when she said, 'I really want to have it too, but I have to wait.' Little by little, she gathered everything together,” he said during the visit. said Scafidi, who developed a relationship with Brickford.
Shopping for kitchen supplies with a purpose
In addition to being a place to find great deals, this shop also helps fund great causes.
“The revenue we make here through the sale of these donated items goes back into our apprenticeship program,” Scafidi said.
Kitchens for Good is a San Diego-based nonprofit organization that helps fund and deliver state-certified, tuition-free apprenticeship programs. This program allows people who have some barriers to employment to learn the skills they need to get a job in the culinary and culinary fields. hospitality industry. About 500 people have completed the program, Scafidi said.
“This is definitely life-changing,” Scafidi said.
Larry Brasley is one of those who successfully completed the apprenticeship program. He and his siblings were raised primarily in Chicago by his mother. He remembers frequently having to cook and clean to help her take care of her siblings. Eventually he joined the military and is now a veteran who is able to pursue his passion for cooking.
“Every other school would have charged me millions of dollars, but this was much more cost-effective for me,” Blaisley said.
He added that he works at a bakery and sells homemade vanilla extract at the farmers market.
“I’m thrilled that they liked what I created,” Brasley said. “I love it when people enjoy what I do.”
Kitchen for Good apprentices like Brasley are accepted multiple times a year. To be considered, you must complete an online form. Then, if selected, there will be 10 weeks of training followed by 10-12 months of paid on-the-job training.
“I always say this is the only job I've ever had where I cried about something almost every day, and it's not a bad tear,” Scafidi said. “Beautiful moments are born because of tears.”
Click here to learn more about the organization.
