Ruth Thompson - Hugs Cafe

Welcome to The McKinney Podcast, where we celebrate the people and happenings that make our city "Unique By Nature." Our guest for this episode is Ruth Thompson, Founder of Hugs Cafe. The MCKPOD is presented by RiskWell and FredShots Photography and recorded at the RiskWell studio in McKinney. Your hosts are James Jenkins and Fred Mahusay. Key Topics: Teaching adults with disabilities to cook at the Market Street cooking school A recurring dream that led to a restaurant employing people with disabilities Opening Hugs Cafe in 2015 after two years of securing nonprofit status Team members who never wanted to leave, and the resulting change of model Launching the greenhouse and training academies to reach more lives Running a social enterprise with higher labor costs and no subminimum wages Why no tips are taken, to protect team members' Social Security benefits Mentoring affiliates nationwide and serving on the Texas Restaurant Association board The new McKinney building, requests to expand, and pacing future growth Leadership succession and using her remaining decade with purpose Visit https://www.mckinneypodcast.com to subscribe to the email list and never miss an episode. Join the #MCKPOD community at https://www.facebook.com/groups/mckinneypodcast and engage with your neighbors and fellow fans of the show. Check out the #MCKPOD YouTube Channel to watch the video versions of our episode and see lots of additional content: https://youtube.com/@mckinneypodcast James and Fred would love to hear from you with any comments, questions, or ideas! Email the show at [email protected] and you may be featured on a future mailbag segment.