By Karen Wang and Xinwen Chen
Bouncing from one job to another, Jazzmone is trying to explore the unlimited possibility of life. But cooking, as he envisions, will be indispensable in his future.
Fifteen years ago, Jazzmone entered Peace4Kids, a non-profit organization that provides programs and services for youth in foster care – also a place he called home. Through Peace4Kids, he found a passion for cooking.
“I come here every Saturday to cook for different kids and cook for myself,” Jazzmone said. “[Peace4Kids] gave me a different outcome than most black youths … they show me a different way to make money, and I actually have fun doing it. And just seeing that different outcome that I can provide myself with was pretty amazing.”
Cooking gives Jazzmone a different view on life and a different way of seeing himself as an African American. But Jazzmone does not only cook for fun. When he was turning 19, he was recruited by L.A. Kitchen as a chef and started to cook seriously and professionally.
“I remember waking up at four just to get to the kitchen around 6:30,” he said. “[L.A. Kitchen] taught me how to be independent, [have] more time management [skill] and take my adult life more seriously.”
It was the lesson Jazzmone learned from school that made him decide to go to L.A. Kitchen. “I ditched a lot because I didn’t take school seriously at the time,” he said. Later, Jazzmone had to go to the adult school, where he spent a lot of time rethinking his life and work.
“In adult school, I started learning that I needed to take my work and my actual life more seriously, instead of playing around all the time. So that’s what made me go to L.A. Kitchen,” he said.
Jazzmone went on to cook for SpaceX and cater for business, during which he also visited Texas and worked for Nordstrom. Working three part-time jobs, Jazzmone is heading toward financial independence.
“Currently, the thing I’m trying to work on is time management because my schedule has never been this crazy before,” Jazzmone said.
“I’m very optimistic about my future. I feel like if I just keep going, eventually I will get to my goal,” he said.
