S4E36 Shannon Cunningham interviews Mission Partner Jesse Vigil from Big Table

The restaurant and hospitality industry is the largest in the country by a magnitude of 2x and is growing faster than any other. Yet – in addition to many truly amazing people – this one industry is the catch basin in our nation for all of the most vulnerable demographics. Including single parents, income insecure seniors, at-risk teens, immigrants, and those formerly incarcerated ready to make a new start. This concentration is the result of some very good news… anyone willing to work can get a job. But put so many at-risk individuals together under one roof and it is not surprising that this industry has the highest rates of people struggling with alcohol and drug addiction, massive amounts of divorce and broken relationships, redline stress levels, job instability, rapid turnover, and almost no safety net.

Yet, because this is the HOSPITALITY industry, these employees must have smiles on their faces to greet the rest of us. This causes their stunning level of need to rarely be noticed.

Learn more at https://big-table.com/san-diego/