Employing former inmates in the kitchen with Sister Theresa Harpin of Restorative Partners and The Bridge Cafe in SLO

A couple weeks ago, as I was scrolling around on Instagram, I saw photos from the recent grand opening of The Bridge Cafe in downtown San Luis Obispo. This isn’t just any eatery, though. In collaboration with the Cuesta College Culinary Arts Foundation, The Bridge Cafe is a social enterprise, providing culinary training and employment for people who have previously been incarcerated. As I looked at these photos, one face stood out amid the crowd, beaming with a little extra light. Turns out it was the face of Sister Theresa Harpin, Executive Director of the organization Restorative Partners, which helps people move from inside the justice system to outside it, and which oversees the administration of The Bridge Cafe. Theresa is a Sister of St. Joseph of Carondelet, a Catholic congregation begun in 1650 around a kitchen table in France. She is kind, articulate, and her clear-eyed way of seeing the world is positively infectious. Listen to Sister Theresa talk about growing up in the Carl’s Jr. family, how she decided to become a nun, her work inside the justice system, and how she dreamed about establishing The Bridge Cafe eight years before it became a reality.

Website: restorativepartners.org

Instagram: @thebridgecafeslo / @restorativepartners