“The biggest change in my life.”

28 graduates were duly bid farewell – for ten of them the journey continues with a permanent job

At the end of their training as a garde manger, the 28 girls and boys aged between 17 and 22 were celebrated as graduates in São Paulo. Around 150 present guests were taken through the afternoon in the Escola Natasha Franco Vieira, the partner school of the project, first with some stirring speeches of mentors, teachers, students and project partners. With the personal presentation of the graduation certificates and the obligatory throw of the graduate hats, the graduates and their relatives also had many tears of joy, because…: For the young adults, this day is the end of an eventful time and at the same time the start of a new phase in their lives.

“A project like this opens up new perspectives and offers them a true opportunity.”

The graduates are all participants in the help alliance project “Vocational training for talented chefs”, which has been supported since 2018. In the last six months, the trainees have learned the theoretical and practical basics of their field of work. In addition to practical units, this also included theoretical basics on management, law, entrepreneurship and nutrition, as well as some extracurricular activities to give them a glimpse on the aviation business. They had the chance to visit a Lufthansa aircraft at the airport during its ground time and saw the new Lufthansa Group sales office in São Paulo as well as the LSG Sky Chefs facilities in Guarulhos. Thus, the project prepared the graduates for their future careers in the best possible way. The school’s principal Maria Fumanti says: “These teenagers probably had no idea of what they could reach in their lives and a project like this opens up new perspectives and offers them a true opportunity”.

Despite the international airport and the numerous large local companies, many young people cannot find employment in Guarulhos. Especially in the outer districts of the city, the poverty rate is particularly high and the educational level very low. This is why it is particularly important that LSG kept its promise and announced the names of the ten best graduates, who will be hired immediately.

The three best graduates fly to Frankfurt

And that’s not all: In addition to the takeover at LSG Sky Chefs, the three best graduates can look forward to a trip to Frankfurt. There they can personally get an impression of the LSG Group. 17-year-old Amanda Oliveira, best in her class, says: “Even if I hadn’t been best in my class, the training would have been the biggest change in my life anyway. This course was a big step in my career and I can only thank Lufthansa, the help alliance and my school”.

Help alliance project coordinator Mariam Meletti, who works in local marketing for Lufthansa in São Paulo, says goodbye to the second year of graduates and thus continues the successful project: In September last year, 30 young people completed their training as bakers and confectioners, giving them career prospects.

In addition to the numerous friends and family members of the graduates who attended, the voluntary mentors of the students, Lufthansa Group managers, other project coordinators and Guarulhos City Council managers were also present.