The Hospitality cohort during their climbing day
This fall, instructor Catherine Cruz worked a busy schedule for Outward Bound California–she worked all seventeen one-day programs out of the Bay Area Center. Out of those 17 days, the Larkin Street Youth Services’ Hospitality cohort days held a special place in her heart.
In this particular program, Larkin Street professional staff teach their clients, young adults transitioning out of homelessness, the tricks and skills needed to work in the field of hospitality. On three separate days throughout the season, Catherine led the cohort in team building challenges, intense discussions about aspirations, and lessons about leadership styles. On the last day with Larkin, a rock climbing challenge at Planet Granite, the lessons Catherine taught came around full circle. She explains, “Out of all the three days it was the most empowering and effective, because of the enthusiasm and insight they brought to the challenges. It was a ‘who’s teaching who?’ moment for me.”
Chaz, a member of the Hospitality cohort, said at the end of rock climbing that day, “Climbing made me feel like I was failing and succeeding in a different way”. This led to tear-filled appreciations, expressed excitement toward their future, and Cruz’ moment of clarity:
“I have been both humbled and impressed by this group, who deal with more adversity then most of us could comprehend. These amazing young adults not only handle the adversity of being homeless, but they do so with a level of grace, humor and gratitude that we could all learn from. The stories they have told me and the lessons I have learned from them made me think of one of my favorite quotes: ‘It was the outsider, the weak, the despised who taught what it means to be a civilized human being’. “
Using teamwork to move the marble from point A to point B
About Outward Bound California’s Partnership with Larkin Street: Larkin Street Youth Services is a San Francisco nonprofit that integrates housing, education, employment and health services to get homeless and at-risk kids off the streets. Outward Bound California staff have collaborated to weave our experiential education model seamlessly into Larkin Street’s youth programming with the goal of building leadership, tenacity and other key skills for life among this vulnerable population. Through the support of our generous donors, 95 youth and staff from Larkin Street were able to join us on nine customized courses in 2014. To learn more about Larkin Street, please visit their website.
