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Homeboy History
Homeboy Industries traces its roots to
“Jobs For A Future” (JFF), a program created
in 1988 by Father Gregory Boyle while he was serving as
pastor of Dolores Mission parish in Boyle Heights. Begun
as a jobs program in 1988, offering alternatives to gang
violence in one of the toughest neighborhoods in the city,
the program soon grew beyond the parish.
With the addition of a small bakery in
a run-down warehouse across the street from Dolores Mission,
JFF had its own business, one where it could hire the most
challenging, difficult to place young people in a safe environment.
The hope was that they could learn both concrete and soft
job skills, to make them stronger, better prepared candidates
for permanent employment. A tortilla stand in Grand Central
Market downtown solidified the evolution of JFF into Homeboy
Industries.
In only a few years, Homeboy Industries
has had an important impact on the Los Angeles gang problem,
with young people from over half of the region’s 1,100
known gangs seeking a way out through Homeboy. Thousands
of young people have walked through the doors of Homeboy
Industries looking for a second chance, and finding community.
Gang affiliations are left outside as these young people
work together, side by side, learning the mutual respect
that comes from shared tasks and challenges.
Homeboy became an independent nonprofit
in August of 2001, and has since grown into a national model.
This year, we will celebrate our 20th anniversary as an
organization in our new headquarters located in downtown
Los Angeles, just two blocks from Union Station. Homeboy
serves as a beacon of hope and opportunity for those seeking
to leave gang life, for whom the barriers and challenges
are great, and for whom there is virtually no other avenue
to enter the mainstream.
In addition to providing job training
and placement assistance and other free programs, a distinctive
feature of Homeboy Industries continues to be its small
businesses, where the most difficult to place individuals
are hired in transitional jobs, thus giving them a safe,
supportive environment in which to learn both concrete and
soft job skills, while simultaneously building their resume
and work experience. Former rivals find themselves working
side by side, finding true community and friendship in place
of the limited community of gang life. Homeboy’s businesses
now include the Homeboy Bakery, newly re-opened in our new
Headquarters downtown, Homeboy Silkscreen, which prints
logos on apparel and provides embroidery services; Homeboy
Maintenance, which provides landscaping and maintenance
services; Homeboy Merchandise, which sells t-shirts, mugs,
tote bags, and mouse pads with the Homeboy logo, now with
a retail storefront in the new Headquarters, as well as
online ordering; Homegirl Café, newly expanded in
the new building with 86 seats, plus a dedicated Catering
kitchen provides a training ground dedicated to female clients
in all aspects of the restaurant and service industry. A
pilot program, Homeboy Press, will publish a literary magazine
in late 2008.
Photo Credits
Website photographs graciously provided
by J. Emilio Flores, Lucas Foglio, Glenn Marzano and Cam
Sanders.
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