Chavi Jackson had not considered a career in culinary arts prior to working at Propel Kitchens. Since she started training in the commissary kitchen in Pagedale, Jackson has gained hands-on experience in kitchen operations, support to care for her young daughter and, she said, a new “family” — something she didn’t have when she moved to St. Louis from Bland, Missouri.
Jackson moved to St. Louis in 2020 not of her own accord: After complications during pregnancy landed her in a St. Louis-area hospital, she went into labor two months early Her child’s father arrived at the hospital with her, but he later abandoned her and their baby at the NICU — leaving Jackson and her newborn unhoused in an unfamiliar city. Despite the adversity, she told St. Louis on the Air that what followed put her on a path of progress.
“[The hospital administration] would not allow me to leave the hospital without having a place to go with my daughter. So, I went to a maternity home. I got my GED while I was there,” Jackson said. “Honestly, when I first started [working at Propel Kitchens], I just needed somewhere close to my house, so that I could support my daughter and pay for what I needed to pay for. But as I’ve been working there, the compassion and the understanding [is] what made me want to be a chef.”
Kisha Lee, Propel Kitchen’s executive director, said that stories like Jackson’s are why the nonprofit exists. Along with training food industry professionals, Propel Kitchens serves as a social enterprise aimed at helping its employees get on their feet after life altering — or hindering — events.