On March 23rd of this year, the doors of a new enterprise opened in Austin, bringing sweet delights to customers and employees alike. Working in partnership with Ben & Jerry’s and supported by numerous area organizations, LifeWorks now owns and operates an ice cream shop at 5th and Lamar, providing training and work experience for homeless youth and mouth-watering treats for downtown patrons. The grand opening on May 14th featured jugglers, live music, cotton candy, lots of ice cream, and a special appearance by the founders, Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield.

LifeWorks, a nonprofit organization, is dedicated to helping youths and families who face such challenges as homelessness, physical and drug abuse, and teen pregnancy. Since 1998, LifeWorks has provided comprehensive services to runaway and unaccompanied youth designed to transition them from life on the streets to self-sufficiency. Through education, counseling, and life-skills training, the organization helps misguided, abused, and abandoned youngsters become healthy, successful adults. With the opening of the ice cream shop, a fortunate group of once-marginalized young adults is now enjoying a double scoop of valuable retail skills.

LifeWorks opened the store with the financial support of many Austin citizens and institutions, including a $126,000 grant from Impact Austin, a community of Austin women who seek to transform lives in the capital-city area through high-impact and lifelong giving. LifeWorks was Impact Austin’s first community partner, and this generous gift—along with the contributions of countless volunteers and advocates—has helped provide Austin’s at-risk youth an opportunity to reshape their destiny.

The Ben & Jerry’s franchise, called a PartnerShop, is one of 12 such stores worldwide and the first in Texas. The PartnerShop program is designed to help nonprofit organizations raise capital, provide job training to young adults who might otherwise have difficulties finding mainstream employment, and benefit the local community. Teens and young adults in the program not only learn how to dip ice cream, they also acquire customer service and accounting skills. In addition, the shop prepares at-risk youths for career-oriented jobs, job training, and college. Each shop is independently owned and operated by a community-based nonprofit organization. Ben & Jerry’s waives the standard franchise fees and provides additional support to help nonprofits operate strong businesses.1 All proceeds from the LifeWorks-Ben & Jerry’s partnership store will be used to support LifeWorks programs.

In preparation for the opening of the Ben & Jerry’s store, LifeWorks held a job fair, which was advertised both within the organization and in local papers. Susan McDowell, Executive Director of LifeWorks, notes that they initially expected 25% of the staff would be youth affiliated with LifeWorks and 75% would be from the community; however, once the interview process was complete, LifeWorks youth had earned three-quarters of the available openings. Susan explains that the 17 young adults who were selected to staff the store were required to participate in a special job-training program—regardless of any prior retail experience. While many of the hires had never worked before, some from the private sector came with impressive backgrounds, including two who had been Ben & Jerry’s store managers before returning to school.

Ranging in age from 17 to 22, most of the staff members from LifeWorks have experienced homelessness or have been in foster care. Susan notes that the personal interactions many of these young people encountered while growing up were largely negative; consequently, improving their communication skills was among the top priorities of the job training program. The program focuses extensively on “soft skills” that, while required of all retail employees, were underdeveloped in many of the LifeWorks hires. Classes focused on such essential job skills as teamwork, motivation, dependability, leadership ability, problem solving, and time management.

Each LifeWorks employee at the ice cream shop will work for six months as they prepare for school or other employment. During that time, some will progress to managerial positions. These young adults realize that a lot is riding on them, Susan explains. LifeWorks respects and understands the challenges that they have overcome to get to where they are and has invested both time and money in their success. While this places a great deal of responsibility on the shoulders of their young staff, it also demonstrates LifeWorks’ faith in their ability to succeed and increases their self-confidence and self-worth.

Ken McManus, store manager, is an integral figure in the ongoing development and education of his staff. Having accumulated years of experience in both restaurant management and youth advocacy, Ken leapt at the chance to oversee the operations of the PartnerShop. When I spoke with him at the store on a busy Saturday afternoon, his compassion for his employees and passion for the business was evident in every word, every task. Working one on one to help each young person discover his or her own potential, Ken leads with a gentle and knowledgeable hand. If an employee should falter in his or her responsibilities, Ken helps the employee understand what is expected of them rather than penalizing them. His faith in their abilities is obviously justified, for they managed the constant stream of afternoon customers skillfully and cheerfully.

On running an ice cream store, Susan says there are two things that must be learned: how to work with young people and how quickly ice cream melts. She learned both one night not long after the store opened. She received a call saying that the walk-in freezer had stopped working. Thousands of dollars worth of inventory was suddenly in danger of turning to multi-colored glop. She quickly advised the store personnel to do what they could to forestall the disaster while she began calling local organizations that could help distribute the ice cream to needy families before it melted. Soon she got another call from Ken, this time to tell her that the crisis had been averted. The staff had put their heads together and come up with a simple but clever solution. They rolled the store’s ice cream catering vehicle (the “Cowmobile”) close enough to the store that they could run an extension cord to it. By the time all the ice cream had been hand-loaded, the on-board temperature had reached freezing, thus saving the inventory and impressing the boss at the same time. This emergency solution allowed the store to operate for the next eight days until the freezer could be repaired.

Before I left, I had the opportunity to visit with Jasmine, a bright and personable 18 year old who is both a shift leader and eloquent spokesperson for the LifeWorks training program. While living on the street two years ago, Jasmine learned about LifeWorks through its Street Outreach program. She began spending time at their facilities and was assigned to a caseworker who, she says, tutored and encouraged her to discover her own potential. When plans for the PartnerShop began to take shape, Jasmine’s caseworker encouraged her to apply. When I asked Jasmine what, in addition to retail skills, she has learned since starting the job, she was quick to reply: “You can’t procrastinate if you want to get things done.” Her goal in life, she said, is to be a leader, which means accepting responsibility and setting an example. Undoubtedly, her personal aspirations will help Jasmine realize her professional goal of becoming a lawyer. When I asked her where she sees herself in five years, she replied without hesitation, “In law school…outside of Texas…maybe California.” After just ten minutes of talking with her, I had little doubt that her vision will become fact. For now, however, she is gaining valuable communication skills, putting her bubbly personality to work, and becoming comfortable in her leadership rope. Still, she admits with a little-girl smile, the best part of the job is the ice cream. Her favorite flavor? “Dublin Mudslide in a waffle cone.” I tried some and happily admit that Jasmine knows her stuff.

It seems like everyone benefits from the LifeWorks-Ben & Jerry’s PartnerShop: the young adults who are gaining skills that will prepare them for college and careers, the customers who come in simply to escape the heat and enjoy a cold confection, Ben & Jerry’s who now have a presence in the downtown area, and, of course, LifeWorks. That small ice cream store at 5th and Lamar not only advances the organization’s humanitarian mission, it does so in partnership with the entire Austin community.

1 http://www.benjerry.com/scoop_shops/partnershops/