Performers, presenters and poets: celebrating the talents of our Risers
At the end of June, we celebrated the end of our 9th Risers Programme. As with all Breadwinners events, we celebrated the achievements of our young people and mentors in style! We held a socially-distanced Graduation but knead-less to say (excuse the pun), that didn’t stop us having a fun-filled evening, featuring inspirational speeches from our Risers, presentations, music and lots of dancing.
Many Risers and their mentors showcased creative projects that they’d completed during the course of the eight-week programme. We learnt that our Risers aren’t just sourdough bread experts but also poets, motivational public speakers, dancers and talented artists!
“I am proud of myself, my colleagues and every single person who helped me during my training. ”
First up we had Lucky and her mentor Sara amaze us with their Bollywood dancing. They had regularly been entertaining customers at Maltby Street market with their elegant dance moves and now it was time for our VIP dance show!
Lucky and her mentor Sara having fun at Maltby Street market.
Next up Ibrahim and his mentor Jess shared a poem they had written together, telling their Breadwinners journey. When we spoke to Ibrahim he said, ‘I am proud of myself, my colleagues and every single person who helped me during my training’. Ibrahim explained that he thought writing a poem was ‘the best gift to the charity’ to show appreciation to ‘the great job that has [been] done by everyone during our training in Breadwinners, [including] mentors, Risers, Breadwinners and all the staff.’
Here is their brilliant poem!
Here we go, working with Breadwinners.
We love the job, we’re no longer beginners.
Work for two hours and free bread for our dinners.
Sorry we don’t take cash, without a card you’ve gotta dash.
We love Breadwinners, though working here is not making us any thinner.
During our time, things have gone better than fine.
CV’s, job interviews and now this rhyme.
Mentor or advisor, working with the Riser.
We discuss and we plan, so that we are better than when we began.
We’d like to end this poem with a message of thanks.
We appreciate all that the team has done, the managers and everyone.
We had a great time and we’re gonna miss all the fun.
Thank you Breadwinners for what the work has done.
Ashkir and his mentor Katie followed, sharing their fantastic engineering-inspired bread masterpiece, inspired by Ashkir’s ambition to be an engineer in the future. Their design included 13 different types of bread from their South Noorward market stall, with even the ‘gluten free’ chair getting a feature!
“I want to thank Breadwinners and my mentor Sokina for giving me a good opportunity to learn new skills that will help me in future.’”
Asiyo ended the Graduation showcases with a presentation taking us through a series of photos that tracked her progression and growth in confidence throughout the Risers Programme. She said she wanted ‘to thank Breadwinners and my mentor Sokina for giving me a good opportunity to learn new skills that will help me in future.’ She hoped ‘to show the next group in the future [that] Breadwinner is the best way to get new skills which will help you in the future.’
She explained that on the first day she felt uncomfortable because she didn’t have any previous market stall experience. Then, as the programme progressed she ‘learned good skills and I felt confident to speak to customers.’ On her last day, she celebrated her achievements and ‘took time with my mentor who helped me with all the good work I did during work experience at the Breadwinners.’
We loved seeing everyone’s creative flair come out at Graduation and were so impressed, as always, with the hard work and dedication of our Risers. The eight-weeks flew by and we’re so excited to see what’s in store next for Cohort 9 Risers.
The Cohort 9 Risers Programme was funded by The National Lottery.
Thank you Lucky, Ibrahim, Ashkir and Asiyo for sharing your creative projects with us.