Starting this summer, a new workforce development nonprofit will do its part to bolster the hospitality workforce in Huntsville while also empowering the local young adults to lead self-sufficient lives.

The program called Hatch is designed to help 18 to 24 year-olds gain essential life skills with training in the hospitality industry. The program will last eight weeks and combines workshops with culinary and hospitality training. Participants will also be paid a $1,250 stipend.

Garrett Coyne: “We are saying that we are not only going to hand you fish, but we are going to teach you how to fish. That is the concept of Hatch.”

“We are just passionate about our community,” said co-founder Garret Coyne. “Everything we do is because we have so much, motivated by a strong passion, vision, passion, and love and vision for the city of Huntsville and everyone who calls it home. We believe that through our work both nonprofit and for profit, we can change people’s lives. It’s exciting and we feel it the program does it in the best way possible. It empowers people to lead self-sufficient lives and to become the best versions of themselves possible.

“We are saying that we are not only going to hand you fish, but we are going to teach you how to fish. That is the concept of Hatch.”

In addition to teaching the skills needed, the program will also make sure each participant is equipped with the necessary certifications for the hospitality industry. The students will then participate in externships toward the end of the eight-week course with partnered restaurants.

While the focus on the curriculum is the hospitality industry, many of the participants will benefit from the life skills they will learn and, in turn, will eventually apply those skills to other industries.

“We know it’s not just a job for two or four years,” said Coyne. “It’s them having enough stability for those two or four years so they are set up on a pathway to then lead an abundant life and give back to the same community by ways of retirement, home ownership and donating.

“They might become be a (restaurant) server for four years. But then, after that, their whole career or, they can can go obtain a two-year degree or a four-year degree.

“They can go into advanced automotive manufacturing at Mazda Toyota. They can go into any of the 25,000 high-paying jobs that are coming into the community.”

Coyne and Beth Boyer, the other co-founder, have been working on this idea since June 2019. One of the main hurdles was securing funding for the first round and they hope the program eventually is able to fund itself.

They are finalizing plans to open a restaurant early next year, equipped with a classroom and oversized training kitchen. The proceeds will go back into funding the job training program.

The first full eight-week program will being in early August with 15 participants followed by four more sessions for a yearly total of five programs and 75 participants. For information, visit https://www.hatchhsv.com.