In The Media | 29 July 2016

Melbourne café gives staff members with intellectual disabilities a chance to thrive

Michael Otto says he has already made “too many” coffees to count since the opening of the Chancez café in Epping last Wednesday.
Michael, who has Down syndrome, is one of 15 adults with an intellectual disability who have been in training for the past 18 months in preparation for employment at Chancez.
“I love it, my favourite part is serving customers,” the 23-year-old told 9news.com.au.

The café is located in the recently opened Epping Community Services Hub on High Street, owned by the City of Whittelsea and managed by lead tenant The Brotherhood of St Laurence.

 Ross Coverdale, CEO of disability support organisation Araluen, responsible for coordinating the cafe, said the skills developed would provide endless opportunities for the staff in the future.
“For someone like Michael, he’s recently moved out of home, he wants to have a job. People with disabilities don’t want to be passive recipients. They want to get out, contribute and express themselves,” Mr Coverdale said.

Source: 9news.com.au