Congratulations to the Summit Café!

We are proud to share that the Ethel and Morty Fruchter Summit Café has received an Innovative Programming Award from the North American Association of Jewish Aging Services. It is a tremendous honour for this initiative, and above all for our students, to be recognized for their hard work and their growing impact in the community.

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For anyone who has not yet visited, the Summit Café is a working café located inside the Donald Berman Maimonides Geriatric Centre, made possible through a partnership with the Donald Berman Maimonides Foundation. It is run and operated by Summit School students from our TECC campus as part of their work training. Under the guidance of job coaches, students take on every part of running a real business, from prepping and stocking to serving the residents, staff, and visitors who come through the doors each day. The café serves up coffee, baked goods, soups, sandwiches, and more, all with a warmth that keeps people coming back.

What makes this initiative so special is everything happening beneath the surface. The café gives our students genuine, hands-on experience in a real workplace, the kind of experience that builds confidence, independence, and skills they carry with them long after they leave Summit. Learning to greet a customer, handle a transaction, work as part of a team, and take pride in a job well done are lessons that open doors to meaningful employment and a fuller life.

There is something deeply meaningful, too, in where this all takes place. Each day, our young students share a space with the seniors of the Maimonides community, and those everyday interactions create real connection across generations. The café brightens the days of residents just as much as it empowers our students. It is a living example of what inclusive, community-based education can look like, and this award is a wonderful affirmation of that vision.

A heartfelt thank you goes out to Cathy, Anita and Josh for their dedication and their unwavering support of our school and our students. This recognition belongs to you as much as anyone.

Most of all, congratulations to our students. You have built something the whole community is proud of, and the world is taking notice.