Nonprofit organization emphasizes healthy lifestyle choices
In the Weeds provides restaurant industry workers with a healthy alternative to alcohol. (Jerry McBride/Durango Herald File)
jerry mcbride
For many people in Durango, restaurants and hospitality provide a livelihood.
Due to the high visitor rates in the city, especially during the summer months, restaurants and bars are given great importance. Although many employees are passionate about their jobs, this industry does come with a certain amount of stress and mental anxiety.
In 2019, John Rowe and Blaine Bailey founded In The Weeds, a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping change the culture of mental health in the restaurant industry.
Bailey sat with me. durango herald Discuss mental health and substance use issues in the hospitality industry.
Q: How did In The Weeds start?
answer: We started a few years ago, but before that we had been in the industry for 17 years. I first came up with this idea in 2015.
My co-founder, John Rowe, worked for me at Carvers and we lost one of our cooks to an overdose. We were already working with him to try to connect them to other resources in town while still running the business.
And John, he went to school to study sociology (a clinical social worker qualification) and things like that. I said to him, “Hey, when you graduate, you're going to have to treat some weird chef,'' and we laughed it off and said, “That's never going to happen.'' Years passed, and in 2018, I experienced the loss of a relationship, was overwhelmed with work, and was constantly stressed.
I couldn't spend time on relationships, partnerships, and personal relationships. So I decided it was time to take some time off and headed out to Wisconsin for the summer to get away from everything here.
I went to work at the company. And our chef gave us a summer project. It focused on “How can we save the world through food?”
So I started thinking about it. In a way, I thought about the individual. You cannot help others until you help yourself. Then, “What does that look like?” So why isn't our industry like that? service trade? ” Because we are connected to every other industry…
Everyone goes to a restaurant at some point, including bankers, construction workers, and real estate workers. I usually go to a restaurant sometime during the week. And we have great opportunities to connect with other industries. we are there. Excellent food service, drinks, atmosphere, all those kinds of things.
Everyone goes to a restaurant at least once, including bankers, construction workers, and real estate workers. We have great opportunities to connect with other industries. We can literally change the trajectory of someone's day.
That was the beginning of the idea, but we decided to bring it back here to Durango because there are so many restaurants in town.
I already knew many of the restaurant chefs and was focused on restaurants. And we're talking about mental health, substance use, suicide prevention, all those heavy things, so we were kind of building that relationship.
Q: How serious are mental health and substance use issues in restaurants and the hospitality industry?
answer: In La Plata County…those numbers are haunting. Nationally, and this is true globally, we are the third-largest industry when it comes to substance use issues.
I think the top two are like health and construction or something. But you know, we always laugh like this industry was so bad, because it's really like the rock star lifestyle, where you can party and still work and everything else. Because you can.
Then I started looking at the entertainment industry and it was No. 4 and (hospitality) was No. 3. It's like, “Oh, we actually party more than rock stars.”
Q: Why do you think this is so?
answer: There's a lot of overlap. From being overworked and underpaid, this is a big industry based on passion.
People ask, “Why stay in this industry if the pay isn't that high?” we love what we do. We love helping others, caring for others, etc. This is (a) a low-income industry and we are trying to transform and work to create viable careers out of this industry;
And then there's the ease of access. If you work in a restaurant, alcohol is always around the corner. Especially if you're a bartender or server and constantly pour drinks. So we're trying to change that culture.
A lot of restaurants are doing things like shift drinks, so we're trying to break out of that and offer other healthier incentives or rewards or choices.
Yes, it was an industry that was overworked, poorly paid, inaccessible, cultured, traditional, populated by sociopaths and users, and yet you could still work even with a hangover.
That was my first job.
My manager said, “I don't care what you do as long as you get the job done.” We start drinking at 8 o'clock, right?
Q: What does your organization do to support people in the restaurant industry?
answer: The biggest one is the top self-care program. So it's our healthy reward for making healthy choices. Providing shift drinks is one of the cheapest and easiest benefits available to workers, so this is how we support our business.
But there are also people who say, “I don't want to drink, I'm under 21, or I'm sober.'' Then I'm like, “Where's my $3 for not getting my shift drink or something?” People think, “I don't have anything else to do, so I might as well have a shift drink.''
So it's like a punch pass. Every time they turn down a drink, they get punched. Once he's punched you 10 times, you turn it in and get a $25 voucher for a variety of healthy alternatives. It's the No. 1 used item.
I moved here from Arkansas 10 years ago to do fun things, but I couldn't afford to do any fun things. So another option is to remove barriers. We charge for passes to climbing gyms and yoga studios, and provide snowshoes, snowboards, etc. for free to people in the industry.
Summer is just about connecting people with things like paddleboarding and kayaking and resources and training.
We pay for professional life skills, development and training to help people in the industry grow the way they want, reducing cost barriers.
Q: Do you think there is anything restaurant owners can do to improve this problem, or is this just part of the industry's woes?
answer: On a personal business level, I think it's always necessary to communicate with your team and listen to and pay attention to your staff as part of the team. I think the most important thing is to pay attention to culture, toxicity, and how you can help change it.
Also, ask for help with that. It's nothing to be ashamed of. I'm not blaming individual restaurants. It's just the way our industry has been for years past.
I think it's about asking for help and understanding and seeing how you can transition the people they're talking about into your team. what do they want? They are also part of the change, on the front lines, leading it and embodying it.
Well, there are different things they can do. When we first started In The Weeds, we asked, “What is our ultimate mission and vision?” It's like, “Okay, let's change the culture,” but that could take him 10 years to he 50 years or whatever.
When COVID-19 hit, the cultural shift really accelerated as people realized how much they should take care of their mental and physical health.
Restaurants used to be like, “We'll get a higher salary, we'll get benefits like this, and we'll get this.'' But then food costs went up due to inflation, and now we're struggling.
Owners, chefs, and managers also have to wash dishes and work in every part of the restaurant. As a result, they lose the ability to communicate with their team because they are exhausted or exhausted.
Q: What are your future plans for In The Weeds?
answer: We are currently expanding into Montezuma and Archuleta counties.
We work with another organization similar to this one in Denver, but they're kind of an urban area and we're a rural (part).
I think it's just about going out and supporting people and helping create those opportunities for people and really changing the culture.
We also work with other organizations, from business owners to other nonprofits. There are all sorts of gourmet shows and documentaries on TV, so this is a very meaningful industry.
It has a real impact on people's lives and could be a really great industry. What I miss most is making food and seeing someone eat my special dish and really love it.
That's really great and I think that's what's really special about this industry. Many people come from broken families, and working in a restaurant means they can start a new family.
