FALL 2017 NEWS MEETING BUSINESS NEEDS AND CHANGING LIVES
PARTNERSHIPS AT WORK Nearly four years ago, Chef Curtis Stone hired his first Chrysalis client to work at his Beverly Hills restaurant, Maude. Darrell became a star employee, and Stone hired several more individuals from Chrysalis. As the opening of his new Hollywood hot spot Gwen approached in 2016, his need for dependable and motivated team members increased dramatically. “We have such a tough time with staff retention in our business, even at high-end restaurants,” Stone told The Hollywood Reporter in a recent interview. “It’s difficult to keep team members active and motivated in jobs that are challenging and relatively mundane – glass washer, pot washer, vegetable prep. But my guys from Chrysalis are so grateful for a second chance. To find an employer that says, ‘Look, I know your past, but I’m prepared to live with it as long as you play by the rules; I’ll treat you fairly if you treat me fairly.’ That attitude gets us real loyalty and really motivates people.” When a client comes to Chrysalis, we know they are motivated to change their life. As they work with their Employment Specialist, we learn more about their skills and help them set goals. Best of all, we are able to present our clients with job leads, many of which come from Chrysalis’ Direct Hire team, who work directly with employers seeking great workers. (continued inside)
Experience back-of-house at Gwen through Byron’s eyes and what it was like for him to get a second chance from Chef Curtis Stone:
ChangeLives.org/Byron
Join Chef Curtis Stone on Thanksgiving morning – run the 2017 Turkey Trot in Downtown Los Angeles with Chrysalis’ Kitchen Brigade team! Pledge to fundraise for Chrysalis via EverydayHero, and Chrysalis will secure your registration for the 5K.
ChangeLives.org/Turkey (continued from front)
Growing from the staffing business that Chrysalis first launched in 1991, our Direct Hire program was launched in 2014. Direct Hire is the best fit for employers who know they are looking to hire a new permanent employee rather than fill a temporary or temporary-to-permanent position that our Staffing team primarily services. Since beginning this program, more than 500 Chrysalis clients have found outside employment with employers who have partnered with us! Lately, an increasing number of Chrysalis participants are finding work in the food service industry. Chrysalis clients have been hired at Cassia, Hanjip, Mohawk Bend, The Butcher’s Daughter, Stella Barra, and The Ponte, to name a few. In fact, 14 percent of Chrysalis clients hired in the last year started a job in the food service industry. This growing area of work beat out other sectors such as construction, retail, and maintenance.
Are you looking for your next great hire? Hire@ChangeLives.org | (213) 806-6362
We expect to see this growth continue, especially as Chef Curtis Stone has helped Chrysalis open more doors to our clients. He has designated Chrysalis as his 2017 #Commit2One philanthropy partner and is committed to promoting fair chance hiring in the restaurant industry. After Stone hosted an industry lunch at Gwen in August, more of the chef’s peers started reaching out to Chrysalis to learn about hiring our clients. Less than two weeks after the lunch, Chrysalis clients had already been hired at Mary Sue Milliken and Susan Feniger’s Border Grill, Jimmy Shaw’s Loteria Grill, and Chris Phelps’ Salt’s Cure. Chef Stone’s support has created a lasting impact on Chrysalis. In addition to advocating for fair chance hiring practices, Stone raised $30,000 by auctioning a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to have him cook a meal at the home of one of our Butterfly Ball attendees. He also brought Chrysalis to the Hollywood Farmers’ Market where we collected more than 3,000 hygiene items for our resource rooms – including enough floss to stretch across the length of a football field 1.5 times. Today, nearly 30 Chrysalis clients have worked in one of Chef Stone’s award-winning kitchens. One of his recent hires, Byron, supervises the back of house at Gwen. With a history of substance abuse and stints in and out of the criminal justice system, Byron thought he would never land a steady job despite his motivation to work and build a life not predicated on his past. Learn more about Byron’s story: ChangeLives.org/Byron.
CHRYSALIS IS MAKING HEADLINES
From an interview with our partner, Chef Curtis Stone, in The Hollywood Reporter, to client success stories in the Los Angeles Times, the word is spreading: Jobs really do change lives!
Check out ChangeLives.org/News for recent stories featuring Chrysalis!
#BEFORETHEBELL: MARSHALL “Grace. Love. Mercy. Inspiration. Motivation. Courage.” These are the words Chrysalis client Marshall draws upon for strength and encouragement. With a history of incarceration and substance abuse, he had not held a steady job for 20 years. Now, Marshall is working a transitional job with Chrysalis as a street sweeper with the Downtown Historic Business Improvement District while searching for outside employment.
“I am so thrilled that Chrysalis has provided a ways and a means to build up my self-confidence so I could begin my transition without having to worry about falling on my face. When I look at my life and the obstacles that I have overcome, I am so grateful that I am free from all of the things that keep a person internally imprisoned. My story is of gratitude.”
Read the full Q&A: ChangeLives.org/Marshall-CE
#VOLUNTEERSPOTLIGHT: STEVE “Many people who have been very fortunate in life ascribe their success to hard work, but, to me, an awful lot of it is good fortune. And to have the opportunity to help people by sharing my good fortune is an incredible thing,” shared Steve Vielhaber. After retiring from a career in financial services, Steve began volunteering at Chrysalis conducting one-on-one interviews and resume preparation. He explained, “the most important thing that we as volunteers do is instill in clients a belief in themselves.”
Steve was recognized with the 2017 Mark J. Benjamin Community Impact Award by the Human Relations Council of the Santa Monica Bay Area for his innumerable contributions to Chrysalis.
SHOP WITH CHRYSALIS The holiday season is coming! Get your gift shopping out of the way, and support Chrysalis while you do it. Add Chrysalis to your AmazonSmile account, grab Lauren B. Beauty’s gorgeous Luxury Nail Couture Collections, or shop one of Chrysalis’ other retail partners at ChangeLives.org/Shop.
In addition to volunteering with clients, Steve serves on Chrysalis’ Board of Directors, co-chairs the Development Committee, and sits on the Finance and Program Committees. Learn more about why Steve changes lives with Chrysalis:
ChangeLives.org/Steve-Volunteer-Spotlight
UPCOMING EVENTS
POKER NIGHT
The chips will be stacked for change at our 2nd annual poker tournament.
OCT 26
6 - 10:30 p.m.
Museum of Flying 3100 Airport Ave. Santa Monica, CA 90405 ChangeLives.org/Poker
MEMORIAL RIDE
Join Michael Shenkman at his annual spin event honoring his son, Matthew.
NOV 5
9 a.m. - 2 p.m. CycleTRaX 27147 Erwin St. Woodland Hills, CA 91367 ChangeLives.org/Ride
SKID ROW FROM STREET LEVEL
Join us for a free walking tour of Skid Row and our Downtown center.
NOV 16
8 - 9:15 a.m.
Chrysalis Downtown 522 S. Main St. Los Angeles, CA 90013 RSVP@ChangeLives.org
TURKEY TROT
Get your steps in - FUNdraise for Chrysalis and join The Kitchen Brigade, led by Chef Curtis Stone.
NOV 23
A NEW JOURNEY BEGINS
NEW ROADS TO SECOND CHANCES Caesar beams when he talks about his full-time job in construction. It’s not the steady paycheck (or the overtime he earns) that’s got him smiling – it’s what that job means to his family. After serving an eight-year prison sentence, Caesar knew that getting a job would be challenging due to his criminal background and gaps in his resume. So when he was referred to Chrysalis and offered a transitional job cleaning up L.A.’s freeways, he utilized the opportunity to leave his past behind and build a new future. Caesar is one of nearly 100 New Roads to Second Chances Los Angeles Reentry Employment Program graduates who have found outside employment since the program’s launch in November 2016. The new contract between the City of Los Angeles and Caltrans is managed by Chrysalis and offers men and women on parole or probation transitional work as they continue their search for outside employment. In addition to earning a paycheck, participants receive job training, assistance with resume writing, interview practice, access to workshops, individualized case management, and job placement assistance. The City of L.A. announced the partnership at a press conference in August 2017. Among the speakers at the press conference were City of Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, Chrysalis President & CEO Mark Loranger, Councilmember Marqueece Harris-Dawson, Caltrans Director Malcolm Dougherty, and CDCR Adult Parole Director Jerry Powers. Caesar also spoke about his experience in the program: “A job gives someone a chance to change their life, but you have to give someone a chance to get a job. The resources I received at Chrysalis and through the Roads program helped me navigate the job search. I feel like I’ve been set up for success…like I have a real chance to move forward in my life.”
8 a.m. - 12 p.m.
Grand Park Downtown Los Angeles ChangeLives.org/Turkey
Learn more: ChangeLives.org/For-Employers/Roads