Due to the increasing population and poverty, a lot of people are now homeless worldwide. An estimate of about 1.6 billion people around the globe doesn't have any place to call their home. Without the four-cornered wall covering their heads, they become more vulnerable to sickness, crimes, risks, and death.
This reason created a spark in the heart of Julius Albrahim to create a business that focuses on giving these people a second chance to live their lives with passion and self-worth. With a huge heart to help, he opened his business at a young age not just to earn money but to make a difference. He named his café Second Shot.
When it comes to homeless people, some might think negatively towards them. Others might think they have lost hope and just gave up in life. But what most people don't know is that these souls also wants a second chance. There's just not enough opportunity given to them. Given these reasons, we want to "break down the misconceptions around homelessness," Albrahim shared with BBC Four.
So how do a 26 years old entrepreneur creates a difference in this world through his business? Instead of hiring well-experienced people in his café, Albrahim train homeless people to work in his café. He starts to invite homeless people and train them one by one to focus on their specific needs well.
Furthermore, the café also encourages their customers to help homeless people by pre-paying food and drinks, so rough sleepers can have their meal anytime they want. Through the help of several generous people, as of the writing, the café has already distributed over 5000 meals and 7000 coffees to homeless people.
One of the people Albrahim helped is "Edge," an ex-homeless person who had lived in the streets for three years. When asked why he was homeless before, he shared, since he has no work and ability to pay his house expenses, he has no choice but to live homeless for years. But now, as he was given a chance to work as a barista at Second Shot, he started to gain not just confidence but his old life back.
Albrahim's goal is to simply help people exit homelessness, but his kind heart and strategy helped these people even more. They are given a new life, hope, and strength to dream again for their future.
Edge and some people in his team have already managed to completely exit homelessness. Some even had a chance to work as a chef. Others already have their own house where they could stay for good.
