Inspiring Second Chances
In December 2022, Blue Jacket, Inc. launched Tall Rabbit Cafe + Community, to provide employment opportunities to Blue Jacket clientele. The artisan espresso-based coffee shop experience provides meeting and gathering space in a vintage, rustic throwback décor. The cafe’s name is a subtle nod to Chief Blue Jacket—Shawnee war chief and namesake of Blue Jacket, Inc.—whose nickname was Tall Rabbit.
“We wanted to find a way to showcase to the community the high-quality individuals who go through the Blue Jacket program, while also providing real employment opportunities for them,” said Tony Hudson, Executive Director of Blue Jacket, Inc.
Blue Jacket's mission is to provide training and opportunities to anyone with a barrier who is striving to earn gainful employment. Their vision is that anyone with a barrier to employment will be restored with hope and provided capacity to obtain and retain employment because of Blue Jacket’s vast network and resources of support.
Blue Jacket received a Capacity Building Grant from Foellinger Foundation to research and consult with other social enterprise kitchens and food services whose purpose was hiring individuals with barriers to employment.
“We knew of other programs in the country that were doing similar work, such as FareStart, but we’re not in the business of running a restaurant,” said Hudson. “Through the Inspire Grant, we were able to assemble a lot of experts and create a business plan that would position us—and our clients—for success. We reached out to local businesses, and they were instrumental in helping us make a model that would work for our clients, and our community.”
“Through this program, the Fort Wayne community can walk through the door and learn that we can trust people who have barriers to employment, and that their past doesn’t define them,” he continued. “The whole experience available to them at Tall Rabbit is because of the managers who take pride in their work. We hope to expand on this concept and open a full-scale restaurant separate from Tall Rabbit in the coming years.”
“I'm very proud of the intentional community building we do here. We don't focus on the monetary exchange—we focus on the experience and sharing our mission. We slow things down, and create opportunities for one-on-one connections.”
– Megan Spring, Tall Rabbit Manager
“When people come to Tall Rabbit, we hope they think, ‘Wow, what a space.’ We hope the experience lends itself to a culture of community and camaraderie—of second chances,” said Hudson.
Tall Rabbit Cafe + Community is located at 2001 Calhoun Street, Fort Wayne, IN, 46802.