Swing by La Mesa First United Methodist Church on a Wednesday morning and you’ll find young people making espresso shots, steaming milk and working the cashier.
Community members greet the young workers by name and enjoy their coffee on the sofa.
“I think it’s so important for young people to learn skills that can help them be successful,” said Lisa Stewart.
Stewart comes from Spring Valley every week to support the pop-up coffee shop. Whenever a young person joins the program, Stewart makes a note of their name on her phone. “It’s showing that you care about somebody.”
The young adults are with San Diego Youth Services, which runs Ground Up as part of its workforce development programming, which pays and trains youth to be baristas across three locations. While the other locations primarily serve San Diego Youth Services staff, the La Mesa pop-up gives young people a chance to practice their skills with community members.
“This is huge instruction for them, and I love being a part of it,” said Ranelle Johnson, a parishioner who makes sure to grab a coffee before Bible study.
The pop-up has been running since late 2023 on Wednesdays from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. While open to the public, there’s a built-in customer base with the weekly Bible study group and monthly La Mesa Collaborative meetings hosted there.
Savannah Brown, 19, joined the Ground Up Program last summer after being referred
by her therapist.
“I needed help finding jobs because I was really only babysitting,” she said.
Brown had been discussing with her therapist the struggle of entering the adult world.
Her first day involved making and sampling espresso shots to determine if they were too
acidic or bitter.
“When I was first starting I was rocky, I didn’t really know anything,” she said.
Brown said she struggled with social skills, but the program has helped her build confidence in talking with people.
“People were very understanding… that definitely helped a lot.”
Now, she trains newcomers to the program.
“Honestly, being a leader. I didn’t know I could do that,” she said.
Judi Park, director of services at San Diego Youth Services, said that the program aims
to provide youth with every opportunity to succeed.
“A lot of our youth have gone through a lot of trauma in their life,” said Park. She said that many of the youth struggle to find work opportunities. “It’s really important to give youth a chance.”
Before starting the program, the youth participate in workshops to build their skills in self-regulation, stress management and conflict resolution, and then they receive ongoing mentorship while working.
The workforce development program served 170 youth last year.
“Youth walk away feeling confident, feeling they were a part of something bigger, and that they are able to do amazing things in this world,” said Park.
Perhaps the most important lesson for Brown is that she has discovered she can channel her creativity into her work. She’s helped design the coffee menu, posters and even makes drawings for customers on paper coffee cups when there’s downtime.
“I think I’m more confident in knowing that whatever I’m going to do, I can channel my own artistic skills into it,” said Brown.
Week after week, customers return to show the youth that they care. For Stewart, who marks it on her calendar every week, she’ll be back not just for the coffee but for the relationships.
“Because life is all about relationships,” she said.
