Meet Adrian. Adrian Aguilar first started as a Chef-in-Training Intern back in the summer of 2013. He had been involved in gangs, drugs, organized crime, and armed robbery. Risk and violence was part of his everyday, but at age 15, he reached a breaking point. Adrian was chased down and hit by a car, driven by two rival gang members. That evening in the hospital, he promised himself that he would do whatever it would take to start a new life.  

He came to Sprouts with almost no restaurant experience, but after four weeks of restaurant training at Boot & Shoe Service, he was already turning heads. Impressed by his passion and tenacity, Sprouts reached out to the community to raise funds for Adrian to train for two weeks in Girona, Spain alongside a Sprouts partner chef.

The day of his flight, Adrian had a panic attack and called to cancel the trip. Already at the airport, his Sprouts mentor pleaded with the airline manager to keep the gate open 15 more minutes as she calmed Adrian down over the phone. Adrian arrived at check-in at minute 14.

Today, Adrian refers to his trip to Spain as one of the most influential experiences of his life. He still lives in the Bay Area working as a chef at a local catering company and is happily married with two children. 

You can give a struggling teen a better life.  

Adrian’s success was made possible because of the generous donations from people in our very own community – people like you. With your help, we will do everything it takes to train 28 at-risk youth to become chefs in 2018. 
We can’t do this without you. Your donation today will turn into a career and a brighter future.   

$20 donation: sponsor an entire day of an intern’s training, including instruction, stipend, and staff meal

$200 donation: sponsor 1 month of an intern’s training, including instruction, stipend, and staff meal.

$600 donation: sponsor 3 months of an intern’s training, including instruction, stipend, and staff meal.

$1,200 donation: sponsor the entire 6-month training of an intern, including instruction, stipend, and staff meal.