Las Vegas, NV (February 9, 2024) – Earlier this week, Café Momentum—an award-winning national nonprofit restaurant staffed almost entirely by justice-involved youth—teamed up with Players Coalition and Stand Together Foundation to bring its life-changing model to Super Bowl Media Center powered by Verizon to reshape the culture around how our country supports justice-involved and at-risk youth because all youth deserve to dream.
Players Coalition, Café Momentum and Stand Together Foundation hosted lunch on Radio Row February 7-8. Meals were provided to credentialed media by Momentum Ambassadors—former Café Momentum interns—giving media the opportunity to witness firsthand how the three nonprofits are empowering young people to transform their lives by using their unique gifts and talents to reach their full potential. The initiative is supported by NFL Legend, Players Coalition Member, and Stand Together Ambassador Shaun Alexander, andformer NFL Linebacker and Stand Together Ambassador, Dhani Jones who were both on-site and joined the Café Momentum youth Ambassadors for the activation.
“The dreams of all youth matter profoundly for the future of America. Many of our youth lack the necessary guidance and support for success, especially within our juvenile justice system,” said Shaun Alexander, NFL Legend, Players Coalition Member, and Stand Together Ambassador. “Café Momentum is changing the way we support young people who have made mistakes. The Momentum Model not only disrupts the cycle of incarceration but empowers these youth to unlock their potential. My goal is to establish a Café Momentum in every city. With the support of Stand Together Foundation, Café Momentum is expanding their reach towards nation-wide impact so more deserving youth can be empowered to rise.”
“At Café Momentum, our program is designed by the young people we serve so that it can best address the inequities, challenges and barriers our youth face. Beyond the allure of a fine dining restaurant, our mission is clear: break stereotypes around justice-involved youth and empower them to dream and reach their fullest potential,” said Chad Houser, Founder CEO of Café Momentum and Momentum Advisory Collective. “We are thrilled to be back at the Super Bowl with our partners, Stand Together Foundation and Players Coalition, to demonstrate the positive effects of the Momentum Model on a national stage to build momentum and create change for youth justice.”
Justice-involved youth are being failed by the very institutions that are supposed to serve them, treating them as throwaways and further barring them from opportunities. The Momentum Model was co-created with the youth it serves and is designed to inspire a new model for youth justice, founded on a belief in people and to treat everyone with the dignity they deserve. These young people are gaining life skills, education, and employment opportunities to help them lead lives of meaning and contribution.
“Café Momentum has offered me a life-changing support system and opportunities I never thought possible. Because they believed in me, I now believe in myself,” said Tristyn Williams, Senior Momentum Ambassador. “My goal is to be a positive role model to other young people who may have faced similar adversity in their life and inspire them to love themselves and follow their dreams because all youth deserve to dream and feel loved at the same time. I am grateful for organizations like Café Momentum, Players Coalition and Stand Together Foundation and the opportunity to be at the Super Bowl to help create change for youth justice.”
Players Coalition added, “Over the past five years, Players Coalition has been proud to be a part of supporting the growth of Café Momentum’s expansion across the country and their long-standing commitment to justice-impacted youth.”
This pop-up activation is the latest collaboration between Café Momentum, Players Coalition and Stand Together Foundation. The partners have hosted previous events with NFL athletes and legends, including a pop-up dinner in Miami for Super Bowl LIV, a pop-up food truck and black carpet dinner for Super Bowl LVI in Los Angeles, and a pop-up food truck activation for Super Bowl LVII in Phoenix.
“It’s inspiring to see what these young people are capable of with the right tools and opportunities available to them,” said Dhani Jones, Former NFL Athlete, Entrepreneur, and Stand Together Ambassador. “Being at the Super Bowl is an opportunity to showcase how Café Momentum, Players Coalition and Stand Together are shifting the narrative around the juvenile justice system. Their success underscores the need for every community to reimagine the justice system in a way that allows our youth to be empowered.”
Both within the juvenile justice system and beyond, we need to change the way we tackle poverty and social barriers, from treating people at risk as problems to be solved, to empowering every person. Stand Together Foundation is committed to supporting changemakers, like Chad Houser and Café Momentum, who are enacting bottom-up solutions in their communities to drive positive change. The goal is to build Café Momentum locations across the country to expand the Momentum Model nationwide and transform our country’s approach to juvenile justice.
“Stand Together Foundation is thrilled to be back at the Super Bowl, partnering with Café Momentum, to change the way people think about, talk about, and tackle our country’s approach to empowering young people, particularly justice-involved youth,” said Evan Feinberg, Executive Director of Stand Together Foundation. “Café Momentum is transforming lives by empowering young people with support and opportunities to help them realize their full potential. Café Momentum proves that if given the chance, these young people will rise to the occasion.”
The momentum for their model has grown significantly over the past year in part by the generous support of Players Coalition. Through the NFL’s Inspire Change Initiative, the Dallas Cowboys and the Pittsburgh Steelers made financial contributions to Café Momentum to expand programming in these respective markets. And, most recently, The Denver Broncos Foundation awarded Café Momentum a $1 Million grant, dedicated to establishing a Café Momentum restaurant in the Mile High City in 2024. Café Momentum is slated to open brick-and-mortar restaurants in Denver and Atlanta in 2024 and currently exploring expansion to Houston and Baltimore.
To learn more about how you can get involved in Café Momentum’s mission to create change for youth justice visit, https://cafemomentum.org/superbowl/. Photos and B-Roll for media attribution can be found via our press kit here.
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About Café Momentum & Momentum Advisory Collective
Café Momentum transforms the lives of justice-involved youth aged 15-19 through a unique internship program that provides culinary training with essential life skills, mental health support, education and job opportunities. Launched in Dallas in 2015 and now expanded to Nashville and Pittsburgh, this innovative program operates within a fine dining setting.
Supported by Momentum Advisory Collective, Café Momentum is a driving force for positive change in youth justice. We are currently focusing our expansion efforts on fundraising to bring our program to Denver, Atlanta, Houston, and Baltimore, reinforcing our commitment to unlocking the potential of young people across the country. To learn more, visit cafemomentum.org and momentumadvisory.co. Follow Café Momentum Instagram and M.A.C.’s Instagram.
About Stand Together Foundation
Stand Together Foundation is committed to breaking the cycle of poverty in America by driving change from within communities. We are building a community of social entrepreneurs who believe in people, work from the bottom up, and unite with anyone to do right. Since 2016, we have committed over $180 million and counting to fuel the innovation of nonprofits throughout the country to build stronger, safer communities where all people can learn, contribute, and realize their full potential. Our goal is to help nonprofit leaders maximize their impact to transform more lives – breaking cycles of poverty. Learn more at StandTogetherFoundation.org.
About Players Coalition
Players Coalition is an independent 501(c)(3) (charity) and 501(c)(4) (advocacy) organization working with professional athletes, coaches and owners across leagues to improve social justice and racial equality in our country. Founded in 2017 by NFL players Anquan Boldin and Malcolm Jenkins, Players Coalition continues to grow exponentially with representation from more than 1,500 athlete advocates across 12 professional leagues. For more information, follow @playerscoalition on Instagram and Facebook and @playercoalition on Twitter.
