Members of the Teenagers Entering the Workforce showcase their original "Dorito nacho" dish, created as part of the program at Whiskey District.--Submitted Photo
asmith@medicinehatnews.com
Whiskey District is challenging the idea that today’s youth isn’t ready to take on the workforce with a new camp program.
The origin of the camp started last fall, says owner Andy Schmunk, when the business sought to provide a space for displaced youth during the teacher’s strike.
“We saw that if by a certain date that the demands weren’t met, there was going to be a strike. And what I thought is, if that happens, that upcoming week, it would be great for us to be able to have these kids somehow come to the Whiskey District and have something for them to do,” said Schmunk.
The initial camp worked in conjunction with the Badlands Training Centre, allowing students to spend part of the day learning to cook and part of the day engaged in physical activity. After the three weeks of operating the camp, says Schmunk, he started receiving interest from several organizations to offer additional camps.
This led to the current group of seven teens taking part in the first Teenagers Entering the Workforce camp, where they learned skills which go beyond the restaurant business to better help transition into their first jobs.
“We’re teaching them how to be great when entering the workforce and how to stand out from the crowd,” said Schmunk. “We’re teaching them how to greet guests, how to shake hands properly and look people in the eye when speaking, all these foundational things. From there, we’re teaching them how to go above and beyond, to communicate, to stand out and be a strong member in any team.”
Schmunk adds he wants the skills learned to be applicable to any industry the teens may choose to enter, not only the restaurant business. Youths started by being interviewed, allowing them a glimpse into the importance of presenting professionally, and from there have taken on a number of projects according to their personalities and interests.
The program has just wrapped up the second week of the four-week program, and is going well.
Tasks at the camp have included creating a unique dish, learning how to cook, portion and present food items, deal with real customers, manage people and even create social media posts to promote their work. Schmunk says the teens’ creation, a Dorito nacho dish, is some of the best nachos he’s ever had.
“We were lucky enough to have a lot of customers come in on the day that their dish was ready,” said Schmunk. “They were serving guests, each of them. It was fun because some of the teens who were a little shy, we were able to persuade them to step outside of their comfort zone and they all did very well.”
These teens still have two weeks to go learning how to be valuable members of any workplace, which will ultimately end with creating a multi-course, chef’s table meal for Mayor Linnsie Clark and some members of council to showcase everything they’ve learned.
From there, the youths will be given exit interviews to give their feedback, and Schmunk revealed he has been taking notes throughout the camp to be able to provide a reference for each teen.
“One of the things that we hear all the time is that the new generation of kids aren’t like the last,” said Schmunk.
While in some ways this is true, he concludes that seeing this group in action, these kids and their parents have “a lot to be proud of.”
