Rebecca Sherbino: The Raw Carrot
If the Raw Carrot’s journey has been a roller coaster with unexpected twists and turns, it’s an attraction she has loved riding and would jump back in line in a heartbeat.
“There were definitely moments of terror. Sheer Terror. And it was just fun! Combined it was sheer excitement, fun, and terror. Am I really doing this?”
At first glance, you may be tempted to think that this is describing a ride at an amusement park, but it’s not. These words are from Rebecca Sherbino describing the first few months of founding her social enterprise, The Raw Carrot. However, her experience is not so different from the ups, downs, twists and turns of a roller coaster.
The Raw Carrot began as a means to provide a sustainable solution to poverty in Canada. They hire marginalized workers with disabilities or mental health challenges to cook, package, and distribute soup. Their mission is, “employment with purpose.” They exist to alleviate poverty in local communities and to create income, community, hope, and dignity through supported work for people who would traditionally fall through the cracks of a profit driven environment.
Entering the Ride
What drives someone to make soup in a church kitchen? For Rebecca, it was a life-on-life relationship with a marginalized friend.
While she was raising her young children at home, she worked as a copywriter. One day, out of the blue, she felt God asking her to quit her job.
“There was no next step, there was just this endless abyss. God asked me to do something, I don’t really know why, and I don’t know what I’m doing next.” However, she obeyed and the months that followed were painful. She had nothing to do. She began to use the empty time to meet with people in her church who were marginalized and also not working. It was in those moments she truly felt she could resonate with the pain of purposelessness.
She began to connect with a teenager about to graduate from high school. The plan for this girl was to graduate and go on social assistance. But Rebecca saw a potential in her, that she had a capacity to do more. So, she stepped into her life and began taking her to employment training to get her set up with a job. At the end of her training she had three interviews!
Yet, she received no offers of employment. Rebecca’s spirit was confused and crushed for her friend.
“I built up someone's expectations personally, saying they had the potential to do more, and there was no avenue to do either. It was a crisis moment for me. I either had to drop the ball or jump in and try to do something.” And that is what drove her to make soup in a church kitchen.
She was truly convinced that her employees were capable of doing this, and that this venture could provide the purpose and dignity they deserved.
The Twists of Fun
Rebecca looks back so fondly on those first few months of starting The Raw Carrot.
“Starting an early stage venture is so fun! It was amazing to see what those four staff members could do. You just get going. We saw the need and right away, we saw impact. I think that gave us confidence in those early days.”
One of her favorite memories is opening the first box of employee t-shirts.
“We opened this box with our staff when they came in one day, and they were literally cheering in excitement of how fun this was for them to be a part of a workforce. They were so excited!” It was at this moment she realized that this operation was bigger than her. She was truly convinced that her employees were capable of doing this, and that this venture could provide the purpose and dignity they deserved.
She also remembers the excitement and fun of success on the business side. The Raw Carrot entered a social innovation contest in their second year of operations, and they won! They received $10,000 to put towards their venture. The money was helpful, but for Rebecca, it also meant that other people saw value in the journey. She felt confident that this dream could go somewhere.
The money was helpful, but for Rebecca, it also meant that other people saw value in the journey. She felt confident that this dream could go somewhere.
The Turns of Terror
As much as the Raw Carrot provided immediate impact and fun memories, it was still a business and needed more than just fun moments to keep it running. Once the laughter and joy over cooking a pot of soup finished at 5:00 p.m., there was the drudgery she felt in business operations. She had to put time in towards sales, her business model, cold calling, and finances. It became less about the people and more about keeping her operations afloat. One of those operations included startup investments.
“We had to invest money to get startup supplies. I invested that personally. My husband and I had set aside some money that we were going to tithe, it was $2,500. That seemed like an enormous amount of money at a life stage when we had small kids and we had no money. I remember being in the store ready to purchase the supplies and being absolutely terrified.”
The initial cost was not the only big bill she received at the beginning. After having her kitchen be publicly certified, the Fire Department came in and gave her a whopping $25,000 bill for a range hood in order to continue cooking soup. Again the terror set it.
“I probably cried for a day. How could we afford $25,000?” If it were up to her own understanding of the twists and turns of her venture, it would have collapsed multiple times over. But her faith in God was the driving force of this dream, leading her each step of the way. They were miraculously able to apply for a grant and keep going.
These moments of terror never stopped Rebecca, even if they challenged her emotions, her perseverance, and her faith.
Riding the Track with Friends
Not only did Rebecca have her co-founder along with her on the journey (not to mention her husband and family!), she credits the last 10 years of success to the community she had around her.
“I feel like I have been rescued at the last minute so many times when I just thought there is no way this is going to succeed one more day. I’ve had people, partners and God that has just carried this through in times that I never really thought it would.”
One of the most tangible supports she had was her church. They let her use the kitchen and gave her and co-founder Colleen support to help them along the way. The church leadership had the faith to take a risk. They believed that the impact The Raw Carrot would make was worth more than the cost of making soup.
Rebecca also carries the humility to acknowledge her strengths and weaknesses. While pushing herself to learn all she could, she saw the gaps in her understanding and filled those spaces with people who knew more than her.
“I have no illusions I could do this myself or I have all the answers to it. I think if you’re willing, know what you’re good at and surround yourself with people who can complement your skillset.”
If there was one thing that kept the Raw Carrot going all these years, it was the people. Whether in the kitchen chopping onions or providing business and moral support, the people around her filled her heart and motivated her to press on amidst the ups and downs of her venture.
Others believed that the impact The Raw Carrot would make was worth more than the cost of making soup.
Finishing the Ride
For The Raw Carrot to succeed, Rebecca has some tangible markers for growth. They hope to see 25 franchise sites with 200 employees, bringing in one million in sales in the next five years (double that for 10). But for her, it’s about more than those numbers. If those numbers are met, it means there are marginalized people who are no longer sitting with purposelessness and loneliness.
“I want more jobs,” she says. “I want to see the next step after crisis intervention where people are not having to go to a food bank month after month after month and never think that they're ever going to get themselves out of that situation. And people don’t want only a paycheck and then go home and sit in loneliness and boredom and a lack of community.
Success for me comes back to the original reason we started. We want to be able to give marginalized people a sustainable means to have their own income and lift themselves out of poverty.”
Rebecca has cherished the experience of founding The Raw Carrot, and is in awe she has gotten to be a part of God’s story for such a time as this.
“I don’t know if this is my journey forever but I feel so privileged to know I got to be a part of God’s journey for this period of time. It’s amazing.”