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| Former Resident Thanks St. Joe's for GuidanceBusiness owner Kevin Hart gives back to St. Joe's, his home 26 years ago
By the time Kevin Hart started his senior year of high school, he’d lived in a different foster home, attended a different school and lived in a different city each year of his life.
The constant readjustment wore on the teenager. The summer before his senior year of high school, Hart found the consistency he craved. He came to St. Joseph’s Home for Children, a place where he finally felt at home.
“I didn’t have to worry about fitting in or meeting a new family and trying to fit in with them,” Hart says. “I was just able to be me.”
Hart says the case managers at St. Joe’s always lent him an ear when he needed it, and if he ever had a problem, they guided him through it.
“And they certainly guided me well, and I was able to become a good person because of it,” he says.
Hart was one of thousands of children who found the help they needed at St. Joe’s, which celebrates its 140th anniversary this month. After leaving St. Joe’s, Hart spent seven years in the Navy and served aboard the U.S.S. Ohio as a cook and baker, skills that led him to his career in the restaurant business. Today he owns Culver’s restaurant franchises in Bloomington and Shakopee.
A loyal supporter of St. Joe’s, Hart still feels a connection to the place he called home 26 years ago.
“I like coming back to St. Joe’s and helping out whenever I can,” Hart says. “St. Joe’s has meant a lot to me.”Read Kevin's story and more in Catholic Charities' March 2009 newsletter |
