Today we’d like to introduce you to Rany Thommen-Moser.
Hi Rany, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
Texana Cafe is a non-profit cafe whose mission it is to make and serve exceptional food while supporting meaningful employment for neurodivergent individuals. Texana Cafe aims to fill a need in the community to equip adults with special needs with essential employment skills so that they can go on to secure permanent employment and lead a meaningful life. According to the Autism Society of America, over 80% of adults with autism are unemployed or underemployed. We aim to showcase the talent of neurodivergent individuals to demonstrate what is possible when people receive the right training and support. Our Cafe Interns spend 6 months to one year with us completing an internship individualized to their strengths and areas needing growth. They are trained in all aspects of our restaurant including but not limited to serving as cashiers, baristas, cooks, bakers, stockers, servers, and cleaners. They gain important customer service skills as well as many other important skills that are transferrable to all industries once they complete the internship with us. Approximately 70% of all of our internship graduates have gone on to secure permanent employment!
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Texana Cafe is part of Texana Center, an existing Local Intellectual and Developmental Disability Authority (LIDDA) and our interns receive training from a Board Certified Behavior Analyst. Providing evidenced based intervention has always been a long-standing strength of Texana. Starting and operating a restaurant brought its unique challenges in that it was something Texana had never done before and it required us to learn a new set of skills operationally. We continue to improve our processes and become stronger at marketing for a restaurant and serve customers to the best of our ability.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I am a Board Certified Behavior Analyst and am trained to provide ABA (Applied Behavior Analysis) services. ABA is the most evidenced-based therapy for individuals with autism and intellectual disabilities. While there are more and more employers willing to hire neurodivergent individuals and including them in the workforce is slowly improving, not all employers are trained to provide employees with accommodations and set their environment up for a positive and successful work place. Implementing evidenced based strategies sets our cafe apart from others and provides those who ordinarily would not be able to learn in the job setting an opportunity to learn countless employment skills.
Can you share something surprising about yourself?
In addition to the wonderful work experience our Cafe Interns gain, for many of them, it is the first time they have gained meaningful friendships. The social aspect of the work environment is something many take for granted. The work environment is a place where many socialize, meet their best friends, or even meet their future life partner. Many of our Cafe Interns have not experienced true friendships before working at Texana Cafe and the growth they make both as an employee but also as a friend has been beautiful to watch.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.texanacafe.com
- Instagram: texanacafe_fulshear
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/texanacafe
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-K8ctPhpJxM
