SALT LAKE CITY — Changing lives, one donut at a time, the Other Side Village Donuts offers a variety of sweet treats, but the story behind those donuts makes them even sweeter.
"Living in a field wasn’t doing it for me anymore," Gideon Nieman is retail operations manager at The Other Side Donuts, "Being homeless wasn’t fun anymore, being a drug addict wasn’t fun anymore, and getting your stuff stolen wasn’t fun."
Ready to change his life for the better, two years ago, he started his journey to the 'other side'. "Addiction is a hard thing to overcome. You have to be ready to make the change. I had to go into detox before I joined the Other Side Village because you have to be clean and sober to join the program."
"To go from hopeless and despair to now have an opportunity of rebuilding, restoration and healing is pretty amazing, pretty amazing," Jennifer Davis, who also works as a manager at the Other Side Donuts, was at a local women's shelter when she heard about this program "An honor, a true honor to work here."
Allowing her to make a fresh start, she says, giving her the vocational skills and the opportunity to put them to work, right inside the shop that offers gourmet treats with something for everyone, "We offer anything from a traditional glaze or maple bar, all the way up to something as exotic as a S’Mores donut or a cotton candy filled unicorn! We have it all!"
Helping those who need it most, and Gideon adds, "That is the icing on the cake!" Both he and Jennifer graduated from the Other Side Academy and now have their own cottages in the Village, funded by the numerous social enterprises run by the program and its participants.
"I graduated in November last year and now I actually live in one of their tiny cottages," Jennifer said.
The villages are in the Poplar Grove neighborhood in Salt Lake, walking distance from the donut shop. "Not only are we providing housing, but we’re providing a loving community that’s trusted and safe," The Other Side Village CEO Preston Cochrane says the vision is to give those in need a second chance. "It’s using each individual’s skills and talents to find what drives them and be able to show whole person change in a human first approach."
The homes have only been here about a year, and more are currently under construction, but this is just the beginning, as they hope to continue to grow. Preston said, "There’s lots of ways to get involved – whether it’s through volunteering or sponsoring, or donating."
Or by picking up one of their delectable donuts, where 100% of the proceeds go toward funding efforts for programs offered through The Other Side. "I could have saved myself a lot of problems and trouble," Gideon reflected, adding if he knew then what he knows now he could have done things differently, but maybe he says it's all for a reason, "I had to go through that hard time then so I could help more people now who are in my prior situation."
If you know someone in need of help, you can reach them at (801) 618–1234. You can also reach them online, where you can find out more at www.theothersidevillage.com.
