Local Spotlight
TURNING RISKS INTO REWARDS by CAROL M. BAREUTHER, R.D.
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rowse among the titles in the pink-painted, cupboard-sized Little
the at-risk young men and women enrolled in the My Brother’s Workshop (MBW) program.
Free Library in the Roosevelt V.I. Veterans Memorial Park in downtown Charlotte Amalie. Two blocks to the west, buy a smoothie or homemade rum cake from the single-story, red-roofed, blue-shuttered café on Back Street. Further afield, sit at one of the laser-engraved handcrafted wood tables at the St. John Brewery in Cruz Bay on neighboring St. John or sip a signature Painkiller at one of the smartly constructed picnic tables at the Soggy Dollar Bar on the British Virgin Island of Jost Van Dyke. If you’ve enjoyed any of these activities or are planning to, then you’ve seen up close the hands-on fruits of the labors of
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My Brother’s Workshop started with four trainees in 2007 as a way to end youth crime and violence by providing hope and faith to at-risk youth through mentoring, counseling, education, on-the-job training and job placement. Today, the program has grown to four facilities offering six programs that annually serve 120-150 young people age 16 to 24, and now MBW is one of the leading nonprofit organizations in the U.S. Virgin Islands. “Students learn carpentry, woodworking, construction skills, welding, CAD (computer-aided design) programming and fiberglassing, as well as the culinary arts and customer service
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through our workshops and café,” explains Jenny Hawkes, executive director of MBW and MBW Café and Bakery. “However, they are also taught a strong work ethic, such as arriving to work on time every day, how to call out when they can’t come to work, how to use a time clock and how to communicate with others and supervisors.” Trainees also receive résumé building and anger management instruction. MBW staff serve as mentors, and licensed social workers are on staff to help guide the young people. For those who have not obtained a high school diploma through traditional means, this is also possible through the MBW’s online educational component.
“Our graduates have found employment in many different areas like hotels, restaurants, retail stores, grocery stores, the airport and others. Some of our students have attended our local university or have gone to the U.S. mainland to pursue higher education. Other students have joined the military and can be found in all the branches,” says Hawkes. Visitors are welcome to call ahead for a tour of the MBW’s vocational training facilities, located across from the Tutu Park Mall. This, and the Café in town, are where lives are changed daily while working on building library shelving or restaurant tables and even baking a cake. For more information, visit www. mybrothersworkshop.org.