Behind the window of a polished black trailer, Rachael Kohl glances at a photographic recipe on the wall before getting to work.
She lays out a long ciabatta bread roll and pulls out a clear tub of fresh chicken salad that she helped prepare before heading out with The JumpStart Cart for the day. The chicken salad sandwich is her favorite to make.
Jacqueline Elick, an occupational therapist, launched The JumpStart Cart in 2019. The nonprofit employs adults with special needs as they are transitioning from school to life in the working world. It is based in the Mountain Top area of Luzerne County.
“Over the last 20 years, I’d noticed that a lot of the programs for after our students were 21 that had special needs were disappearing. They would finish school and just be home,” Elick said. “As an occupational therapist … we work hard and build these relationships with them (the students), and they have such potential to keep growing.”
The cart relies on grant funding, fundraisers and revenue from its food to remain open. Elick says the community has been very supportive, and this summer was their busiest by far.
"It's a surreal feeling. I get very excited about it and humbled by all of the support that we get," Elick said. "It just helps me kind of keep pushing through to build it."
She now employs five adults with special needs and two job coaches who help out in the cart.
They serve panini sandwiches and wraps, using panini presses as the main cooking element. The steps for each sandwich are shown in photos above the prep station.
Elick said they prepare the cooked fillings for sandwiches -- like their chicken salad and barbecue pulled chicken — at The Broadway Tavern, and everything is made from scratch.
The cart frequently stops at The Fitness Place in Mountain Top, and this year they'll be at Crestwood High School every Friday to work with life skills students.
"The students run the cart, from setting it up, to serving lunch, to breaking it down," Elick said. "They get the real life experience and continue to build skills."
Elick said working with food not only builds on life skills, it can open up different career opportunities in the food industry.
"I love that it's training and development for real-life activities," she said. "There's so many things that are involved in a food industry operation. It's not just serving and making sandwiches."
