From gangster to rising star: Mowbray's Gangstar Café beacon of hope for ex-cons

Lester Kiewit visited Ingrid Kalie-Moses from The Message Trust in Mowbray at Gangstar Café which assists ex-offenders once they are released from prison by giving them a real opportunity.

Gangstar Café was launched in Mowbray in 2017 and is the first café in the city employing ex-offenders, only - serving as a beacon of hope for released prisoners.

Kalie-Moses says the café was born as a direct response to ex-offenders trying to find employment and "transcend" from their mistakes after being released, rehabilitated, and reformed from prison.

"All of us has some way been part of a gang mentality so it's not just gangsters in townships but a gang mentality where we are held captive by our thoughts. Our approach to working with individuals who have gotten a criminal record is to help them transcend the mistakes they've made in the past... and show them a better way of living." 

Ingrid Kalie-Moses from The Message Trust

Only 7% of individuals who are part of the programme offered by Kallie-Moses and Gangster Café re-offend.  

Gangstar Café offers ex-offenders a holistic approach to healing, one person at a time...

Kalie-Moses says ex-offenders go through an 18-month programme that goes beyond the surface.

"It's a holistic approach, not just a job-readiness programme to get them into a job. We take individuals through an 18-month programme process which doesn't just touch the surface of skills development or how to make a CV, it's about addressing the problem holistically, one person at a time because each person's story is different because the trauma and things triggering each person differs."

Ingrid Kallie-Moses from The Message Trust

In the programme, individuals go though: 

• Job readiness programme
• Skills training
• Trauma healing
• Discipleship 

After the programme, individuals are encouraged to become urban heroes...

"It's about raising urban heroes, helping them transform their mindsets, transform those things that hold them captive about their past and maybe about the perception about themselves and provide an opportunity for them."

Ingrid Kalie-Moses from The Message Trust

"The café is also an opportunity for individuals who go through the programme to gain job experience because many of the individuals who have been incarcerated might not have worked a day in their life because they were trapped in poverty, in a mindset, in socio-economic circumstances."

Ingrid Kalie-Moses from The Message Trust

So, next time you're in Mowbray, grab a coffee and something lekker at Gangstar Café and help change a life!