It all started with fruit, pounds and pounds of fruit donated to Pivot from our local food bank. Our Food Services manager, a trained pastry chef, scratched her head wondering what to do with all the fruit before it went bad. 

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At the same time, Pivot is a nonprofit organization in Oklahoma City for 12-24 year-olds aging out of foster care, in the criminal justice system or experiencing some level of homelessness. We are always looking for ways to serve our youth - being a launching pad for their futures. We wanted to give them a chance to learn how to interact in the workforce through on-the-job training at our facility.

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When these two came together, Pivot Preserves was born. 

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This social enterprise employs our youth on a six-month basis and is trauma-informed, considerate of the complex backgrounds and traumas of our clients. The protected environment will teach those employed coping skills and eliminate the barrier and anxiety of transportation issues. Because at the end of the day, preserves are yummy, but it also means protecting, taking care of, safeguarding the young people we serve every day. Our main hope is for our young people to graduate from the program and move on to full-time, stable employment.

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Long story short: we’re going to make jelly! Cause that’s our JAM!