One of the special-needs workers making drinks in the cafe.
THE Methodist Care Centre (MCC) Cafe in Agape Centre, Sibu serves a large array of food – from laksa, rojak, chicken burger, noodles, mee hoon, kueh tiaw to nasi lemak, salad chicken rice and ayam penyet, all priced reasonably from RM4 to RM8.
But it is not just the food that makes the cafe special, customers here are also served by a special group of people.
The food and drinks are prepared by six adults with special needs. The two men and four women aged between 20 and 30 make breakfast and lunch for customers.
The cafe, which has been in operation since July last year, is open to the public from 7am to 3.30pm on weekdays. It is closed on weekends and public holidays.
“We don’t make a profit here as the sole aim of the cafe is to provide job opportunities for special-needs adults. We pay them a monthly allowance for the job,” said MCC supervisor Wong Kee Wei.
He said the six workers were taken in to undergo three months’ training before they started working at the cafe.
“They all started from scratch. However, most of them had gone through the MCC employment training programme at age 19.
“At the cafe, they were taught how to make toast and drinks and cook noodles,” Wong said.
All of them are assigned specific tasks based on their interest and ability.
“Before the training, we will need to know their interest. If their preference is for cooking, then we train them for that.
“During the training and also when they are working now, we continue to motivate them so that they can produce quality work,” he added.
Their performance, according to Wong, is “so far so good” and they are enjoying their work.
Wong also said the response from the public has been good.
“We even have group bookings. A Methodist Church, for example, holds senior members group gatherings every Monday at our cafe.
“We do not only have walk-in customers but also those who book via WhatsApp as we provide delivery for orders above RM50.”
There are currently 92 adults with special needs at MCC. The others do work such as car washing, recycling and cleaning at the centre.
In addition, 150 children with special needs attend early intervention programmes at MCC to prepare them for primary school.
