Casey Kraft, 32, walked across the stage at Cafe Oztara on June 13 while her family looked on.
“This is my first graduation,” Kraft said. “This is really big.”
Kraft’s parents, aunts and two of her children were there to see her graduate. Her peer recovery coach and therapist were there, too.
“It was important to show them that I have changed and that I’m not just playing around, that I’ve really turned my life around for them,” Kraft said.
Casey Kraft hugs a family member after the ceremony. Credit: Jenna Watson/Mirror Indy 
Bi’ianca Wilson (right) and Tillie Manning (left). Credit: Jenna Watson/Mirror Indy 
Stephanie Hambrick cheers on graduates. Credit: Jenna Watson/Mirror Indy 
Damien Center’s Jaime Reynolds (right) hugs graduate Jessica Dawn. Credit: Jenna Watson/Mirror Indy 
Twinkle VanWinkle, general manager of Cafe Oztara. Credit: Jenna Watson/Mirror Indy 
Damien Center Staff and family and friends of graduates cheer during a ceremony for the first cohort of graduates. Credit: Jenna Watson/Mirror Indy 
Alan Witchey (right), president and CEO of Damien Center, speaks during the ceremony. Credit: Jenna Watson/Mirror Indy 
Bill Karnes accepts his certificate. Credit: Jenna Watson/Mirror Indy 
Casey Kraft wipes away tears. Credit: Jenna Watson/Mirror Indy
Kraft and three other graduates make up the first cohort of the Cafe Oztara Customer Service and Hospitality Training Program. Damien Center, the state’s oldest and largest HIV/AIDS service organization, opened the cafe in February. In addition to being a community space, the cafe offers hands-on hospitality training.
“We know that the unique clients that we serve, particularly from the LGBTQ+ community, need a safe haven where they can shine and be themselves,” said Sharon Rickson, the employment and education program manager at Damien Center.
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Rickson said Damien Center works with many people who face barriers to employment, and trauma-informed practices have been carried over to Cafe Oztara’s training program.
“It’s not a ‘three strikes, you’re out,’” Rickson said. “You were late because you couldn’t get to work on time? Let me get you a gas card, let me give you a bus pass.”
For 10 weeks, cohort members split their time between working in the cafe and in the classrooms to learn skills needed for the hospitality industry. Participants learned how to make a resume and worked on interview skills. They also gained life skills such as punctuality, budgeting and self-care.
“Sometimes we forget about self-care, but it’s so important,” said Aundrea Lacy, the hospitality training case manager at Cafe Oztara. “If you’re good, then you’re good for the job.”
Lacy said workforce development programs like Cafe Oztara’s are important for everyone, but especially for the LGBTQ+ community.
“Sometimes we’re not seen as the people we really are,” Lacy said. “Some of us have been through things because we were young and put out on the streets and we’re just trying to get our lives back. This is for the underemployed, the unemployed and the people who have these barriers.”
Bill Karnes, 55, said he has experience working in customer service, but wanted to polish up his skills.
“There were certain things that I didn’t know, like how to build a resume,” Karnes said. “So I wanted to fine-tune those things and it made me feel a little more complete.”
Karnes said the program came to him when he needed it the most. He had been unemployed for a couple of months and was struggling to find work.
“There are too many people who are having trouble finding employment and maybe don’t even know where to start,” Karnes said. “This is a perfect way to start, especially for a younger person who doesn’t know what to do yet. This gets some income in their pocket as well as gets them skills.”
Karnes already has interviews for jobs lined up.
Casey Kraft, whose family came to watch her graduate, said she’s proud of herself.
Kraft said Damien Center helped her turn her life around. She also went through Damien Center’s harm reduction program and has been sober for almost a year. She recently found housing and the center has offered her a job at Cafe Oztara while she works on getting her peer recovery coach license.
“This is what I want to pursue after all this,” Kraft said. “I mean, they brought so much back to me. I’m ready to give.”
Learn more
The Cafe Oztara Customer Service and Hospitality Training program is currently only offered to Damien Center clients, but the organization has plans to open it to the larger community.
A correction was made on June 27, 2025: A previous version of this story misnamed Aundrea Lacy in a photo caption.
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Mirror Indy reporter Darian Benson covers east Indianapolis. Contact her at 317-397-7262 or darian.benson@mirrorindy.org. Follow her on X @HelloImDarian or on Bluesky @darianbenson.bsky.social.
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