From being homeless on the streets to joining a team of talented chefs in a gleaming kitchen, Yaseen Damon, of Lotus River, and Marwan Zimri, of Grassy Park, are hoping to leave behind a legacy of empowerment and economic opportunities for the disadvantaged.

The pair are set to embark on their journey at a new community cafe set to launch later this month. The O Cafe is the brainchild of co-founder and manager Anthea Martinus, who says she hopes the cafe champions transformation, resilience, and community.

Community hub

The new coffee spot aims to become a vibrant social enterprise that sustains its parent organisation, Oasis Reach For Your Dreams, while directly empowering individuals on their journeys to recovery from addiction.

Oasis is a Schaapkraal-based non-profit organisation (NPO) founded in 2000 that uses sports, specifically football and netball, to empower youth and marginalised communities.

It provide life skills training, violence prevention programmes, and community upliftment to at-risk youth.

Previously, People’s Post reported on Oasis assisting a group of local young men hailing from Lotus River, Grassy Park, Ottery and Phumlani Village hoping to qualify for the opportunity to compete and represent the national team on foreign soil for next year’s Homeless World Cup (“From the streets to Mexico City”, People’s Post, 15 September).

Self-sustainable

Oasis relies heavily on external funding, and therefore the team actively sought innovative ways to become self-sustainable, Martinus said.

“This inspired the birth of the O Cafe—a social enterprise designed to pour resources back into the organisation so our essential community work can continue. Beyond sustainability, the cafe serves as a vital training ground, providing our facility’s residents with valuable hands-on skills and developmental opportunities in the food and hospitality industry,” she said.

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As a self-sustaining enterprise, all monies generated at the venue pour directly back into Oasis.

This secures the critical funding required to keep primary rehabilitation and support programmes running. The cafe’s furniture, tables and chairs were refurbished by some of the Oasis members, she added.

“We’ve done lots of renovations with the help of our Oasis residents. This is their own handiwork and there was lots of woodwork that was done. There are tables that they’ve made themselves and a coffee station that they’ve built, and some of the residents are part of the kitchen staff and learning about the food industry and how to bake bread,” she said.

Today, the cafe serves as a live training ground for residents in the rehabilitation programme.

Skills training

By working directly on the floor as front-of-house staff or behind the scenes as kitchen hands, residents gain invaluable, real-world hospitality experience.

Damon says he spent 25 years in the woodwork industry.

However, working on the renovations at the O Cafe was a completely new experience for him.

“I had never done anything quite like this before—crafting tables from scratch, brainstorming ideas for the coffee station and counter, and watching them transform into a beautiful finished product. We worked entirely with second-hand wood, taking old materials and breathing new life into them. It reminds me of our own journeys when we first arrived at Oasis. We came in feeling broken, but step by step, we are becoming who we were always meant to be,” he said.

Zimri says he is currently training as a kitchen hand at the O Cafe.

Empowering

“This has been an incredible opportunity for me. When I was younger, I always dreamed of working in the food industry, but over time, it became a forgotten dream. Having this opportunity now feels like a true blessing. It is exciting to learn how to work with food, taking simple ingredients and transforming them into something everyone can enjoy,” he said.

Robin Brophy is tackling the role of Head Chef at the O Cafe after successfully completing her drug rehabilitation programme and remaining deeply committed to her recovery.

She transitioned from a client to a staff member.

“While I bring 22 years of experience in the food industry—often navigating extremely high-pressure kitchens—the O Cafe offers a far more grounded environment. This calmer space allows me to support my ongoing recovery by practising patience, mindfulness, and dedicating my time to a meaningful purpose. I have finally found my true calling: giving back to my community through my passion for food,” she said.

Moving forward, her goal is to reach out to their community to train, mentor, and equip individuals with the skills they need to become job-ready for the hospitality industry.

The cafe is set to launch on Saturday 10 October.

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