Cooking isn’t just a hobby for Luis—it’s his hope for a brighter future.
Before coming to Mercy Home for Boys & Girls, the budding chef, now 17, had received little encouragement to do well in school or pursue the things he loved.
Luis was only six when his parents lost custody of him and his younger sister. The two children then went to live with an aunt and uncle.
“Education wasn’t important to my parents,” Luis said. “I remember going to my kindergarten graduation ceremony and my dad just asked for my diploma and we left. We weren’t even there for five minutes.”
Luis’ aunt and uncle eventually became the legal guardians of the siblings. However, Luis did not get along well with them, and often behaved badly. His aunt and uncle had a difficult time with Luis’ defiant behavior, and eventually enrolled him in a boarding school for disadvantaged children.
Luis initially excelled in the boarding school. However, by the time he reached high school, he began having problems again—both in class and in his relationship with his aunt.
The boarding school referred Luis to Mercy Home. He responded well to the structure he found here, but struggled to use his time constructively.
His youth care workers began looking for an outlet for Luis to use his energy productively. Since Luis was always eager to cook dinner for his peers, his Career Resource Counselor suggested that he take summer cooking classes.
“Cooking is something that frees my mind,” Luis said. “It’s safe, fun, and easy.”
Since igniting his love for cooking, Luis has been working hard to stay on the right path. He is doing better in school, recently found a job at a local restaurant and has begun healing his relationship with his aunt.
“Luis had made huge improvements,” said Bryce Brooks, a program manager at Mercy Home. “He works hard during study time, has greatly improved his conduct in school, and has done a great job of controlling his anger.”
Luis has also developed an interest in photography, and hopes to study business management in college so that he can open his own restaurant.
