When Raymond Mendoza was growing up in San Luis Obispo County along California’s central coast, he had a nice upbringing. But a series of bad choices resulted in Mendoza “getting into pretty stupid stuff: drugs and alcohol” – and he had a hard time getting out and starting over.
In an effort to escape his addictions, in his early 20s Mendoza moved to Mexico, where he lived and worked for more than a year, picking vegetables in the fields daily with his cousins.
“That experience really taught me a lot. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the beginning of my sobriety,” admitted Mendoza, now 34. “I moved back home [to the United States] about a year after that and went back to work [in the service industry] and just kept on working.”
Until he couldn’t anymore. In August of 2018, Mendoza overdosed on a nearly lethal mix of Norcos, Xanax and alcohol. He spent an entire week unconscious in the hospital before waking up. That’s when he finally “took the first step in my recovery: admitting I had a problem.”
“Eventually, addiction catches up with you,” said Mendoza. “After I got out of the hospital I tried getting sober on my own for six months, but I [was having] a hard time staying on track. … I was pretty down in the dumps until I found Hope [the Mission].”
Finding Hope in the Kitchen
In 2019, Mendoza joined a nine-month residential alcohol and substance abuse recovery program for men provided by Hope the Mission, a growing nonprofit that has homeless shelters and services aimed at reducing hunger, poverty and homelessness, and treating addiction issues.
As part of the work-therapy program, Mendoza volunteered five days a week in Hope the Mission’s main kitchen, which was located in Pacoima at the time. Spending hours in the kitchen – receiving hands-on culinary training and working alongside employees as well as fellow recovering addicts – Mendoza said he felt a sense of purpose, especially knowing he was helping to feed thousands of individuals and families receiving assistance from Hope the Mission.
“It works – it works for the people who want it,” said Mendoza, noting that sometimes it takes more than one try – the nonprofit gave him the chance to restart his life twice. After relapsing, Mendoza returned and completed the program again in 2021 – and today he works in the kitchen.
“It’s about accountability – I think that’s a very important part of recovery,” said Mendoza, who was hired as a cook 16 months ago and was recently promoted to kitchen logistics specialist. “Everybody here knows me. … That helps keep me in check and always looking forward.”
Earlier this year, Hope the Mission relocated its primary regional kitchen from Pacoima to the organization’s headquarters in North Hills and dramatically expanded its size and scope. The newer state-of-the-art kitchen is “30 times larger” than the old facility and creates more than 6,000 meals daily that are distributed to people sheltered by the organization across the San Fernando Valley and beyond, according to Chef Jason Moniz, senior director of food services for Hope the Mission.
They have approximately 35 kitchen employees – double the previous staff. At any given time, about 10% of workers are residents from “Hope House” taking part in the work-therapy program to gain real-world culinary skills, work experience and potentially jobs, like Mendoza, explained Moniz, who was a professional chef for 35 years before joining Hope the Mission last fall.
“I was at a place in my career where I really wanted to be able to give back and one of the things that really interested me in Hope was being able to use my skill set in a way that can really enhance other folks’ lives,” he said. “Being able to teach someone a craft like cooking is really a great thing, and having the amount of experience I do, it seemed like the natural direction to go.”
‘Made With Love’
Most of the meals they cook and distribute are hot meals “made from scratch,” said Moniz, noting they are near their goal of having 90% of their meals be exclusively “scratch made.”
“I didn’t want to jump into something where I was just opening up a can and heating it up,” continued Moniz. “We’re taking a different approach. We’re moving away from using processed foods [and] hydrogenated oils and high fructose corn syrup. We’re using natural ingredients – fresh high-quality produce, high-quality meats … to create high-quality foods.
“And [the meals] are made with love,” he said. “When that happens, it changes everything.”
Ken Craft, founder and CEO of Hope the Mission, said a good meal can “reset the soul.”
“When people come to our [homeless] shelters or other facilities, oftentimes they’re at their lowest point in life, and they don’t know where to go or what to do,” said Craft. “A good night’s sleep, a hot shower, clean clothes and a good nutritious meal [can] be that reset button [and] help move someone out of survival mode and into possibility mode and that’s when hope is ignited.”
Looking Ahead
To help more people ignite hope and possibly create new long-term goals for the future, Moniz said in early to mid 2025 they plan to expand their culinary training beyond the current work-therapy model for Hope House residents. They will launch a six-week intensive program that will be open to individuals who are receiving services at other Hope the Mission facilities.
“It’s in the [early] stages, but the idea is to do a fast-tracked culinary job training program, to bring in people who are interested in bettering themselves, in bettering their lives,” he said. “If we can give them tangible skills they can take out to a restaurant and get a job, they might start out at the bottom, but they would have skills to build on and the ability to work. That’s the goal.”
For Mendoza, working for Hope the Mission and having the opportunity to assist others facing a range of challenges at different stages of their lives “really puts your life in perspective.”
“I know everybody has problems, but when you are able to really empathize with another person, it’s kind of like holding a mirror up to your own life,” he said. “You become more thankful for the blessings that you do have … and that makes it easier to keep going and set the next goal.”