Sunflower Bakery is a located in Maryland and “dedicated to providing skilled job training and employment opportunities in the baking and hospitality industries for adults 18+ with learning differences.” Sunflower Bakery is the only bakery in Maryland that does this work, operating multiple programs including the Pastry Arts Training, Hospitality Employment Training Program, and Teen Exposure Program. Since Sunflower Bakery reopened its programs in June, applications for the Employment Training Programs have increased by 30%. To meet the need, Sunflower anticipates serving an additional 10-12 young adults in their programs in the next year.
Sunflower Bakery first came on the The Ascienzo Family Foundation’s radar in 2015, when Tom Triebwasser (RHHS ‘01) from the inaugural ambassador class applied for a grant for their Pastry Arts Employment Training Program. Sunflower has received grants from the AFF since 2015, and this year has worked with Sunflower Bakery for four of the last five years, and this year Tom Triebwasser and Executive Director Daphna Raskas applied for a grant, that was approved, for $10,000. This grant will also support the Pastry Arts Program, now in its 10th year! The Pastry Arts program serves culturally diverse young adults with developmental or other cognitive disabilities, and is nearly 6 months program that includes “formal pastry and baking instruction; employee preparedness including strategies for workplace communication, job responsibility, resume-writing, interviewing and ServSafe training; supervised on-the-job training including a customer service rotation; a paid internship at Sunflower Bakery; direct employment matching assistance; and guidance with job onboarding at the start of employment.” As Sunflower describes, these programs are extremely important considering the “dire lack of opportunities for specific career training for transitioning young adults with disabilities from schools to work.” The AFF is very happy to have partnered with Sunflower Bakery for another year!
Read more about Tom Triebwasser and Sunflower Bakery on our blog here!