Proud to Be From Pittsburgh

Proud to be from Pittsburgh: The Strand Cafe

A café opened in downtown Zelienople, but there is a twist.

It is an extension of the Strand Theater next door. However, what makes this café different is the people who serve the customers.

The program started at Seneca Valley High School. The special needs program opened its first café there.

Now, students who graduate from the in-school café work at The Strand.

Channel 11’s Peggy Finnegan has an exclusive inside look at the café run entirely by students that makes us proud to be from Pittsburgh.

Zach Brezina is one of several students who spends their days working in the Strand Café, next door to the Strand Theater.

“I’m getting credits to work here, but I also enjoy working here. So, it’s a win-win,” Brezina, an 11th-grade student said.

Making coffee, taking orders, and cleaning up are all jobs done by students in the special needs program.

E.G. Sipp, a Seneca Valley community-based instructional teacher, said they are working on skills to prepare the students for the next phase of their lives.

While the program is new, there is plenty of excitement and buzz around it. The theater is hoping that the two businesses help each other grow.

“We already kind of felt a definite passion for doing it,” said Jeremy Czarniak, associate director of theater operations for The Strand. “When the opportunity came up, it was something that just made perfect sense. We have a theater – what's better next to a theater than a cafe?"

One month after the café’s launch, The Strand is already looking for ways to make the program bigger.

“We’re even talking about extending the program to include their vo-tech to supply us with the baked goods that we currently have available at the café,” said President and Executive Director Ron Carter.

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Cox Media Group

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