Featured Image: The Lily Pad
Nestled in the delightful town of Ridgeland, Mississippi, lies a quaint eatery called The Lily Pad. Though it may look like a typical run-of-the-mill cafe serving up delicious food, this spot is doing a lot more than satisfying bellies. Behind the sandwiches, salads, and deviled eggs is a mission to train young adults with developmental and intellectual disabilities and equip them with the skills to take the next steps in their lives and obtain employment with other businesses.
At the heart of it all is Kristen Lape, the co-founder and director whose family helped plant the seeds for what would blossom into the bountiful business The Lily Pad is today.
A Ripple in the Water
When Kristin Lape’s daughter, Lily, was unexpectedly diagnosed with Down syndrome, she put the wheels in motion for a non-profit initially called Running for Lily.
“We began raising awareness for Down syndrome and raising funds for two local organizations that supported families from the time our children were born.”
From there, Kristin’s husband also began participating in marathons, pushing their daughter, Lily, while wearing Down syndrome awareness shirts.
Building awareness was certainly a start, but then came the real question: Where do we go from here?
“As we built connections in the community and began seeking answers about what the future would look like for our children, parent after parent told us that there weren’t many opportunities for their children to work.”
After plenty of research trying to find solutions, Kristin and her cofounders, the Elliotts, discovered a business in McKinney, Texas, called Hugs Cafe Inc. — a restaurant that offered training and skill development to help people with intellectual and developmental disabilities thrive in hospitality and restaurant environments.
From there, Kristin and her partners made it their mission to bring a place mirroring Hugs Cafe to Mississippi. Fundraising efforts pivoted to the new goal of enough money to open a restaurant that would change the lives of so many wonderful people.
“A visit to Hugs in 2018 would prove to give us more passion and drive to make it a reality.”
With fundraising and many generous donations, they were able to enter the construction phase in 2021 after purchasing the building they are in today.
“We had so many businesses jump on board to assist us with in-kind support of labor, materials, and guidance,” Kristen says. “We also had the community involved with volunteer days for tasks such as painting, cleaning, etc.”
With the construction phase concluded in September 2024, they began recruiting students for the first cohort to go through the training program and officially opened doors to the public in December 2024–a true Christmas blessing.
Every Frog Needs Somewhere to Land
With the goal of preparing individuals ages 18 and up with intellectual and developmental disabilities who wish to be employed in food service and hospitality industries, The Lily Pad Training and Internship provides a path to take the leap. During the training program, students will learn skills like personal responsibility, communication, attitude, learning, customer service, industry- and work-specific skills, food preparation, knife work, baking, and various clean-up tasks (bussing, cleaning, dishwashing).
“Upon acceptance to the Lily Pad Training Program, individuals will begin with educational coursework from the Hugs Training Academy program,” she adds. “Once completed and the individual has graduated from the training program, trainees will be evaluated for either internship opportunities at The Lily Pad or receive recommendations and referrals for other programs.”
Interns who have reached their potential and gained the skills required to become employable go through The Lily Pad’s employment partners to transition to a local business.
With the skills learned at The Lily Pad, the outpouring of support by the Ridgeland community, and the patrons that visit and eat each day, the soul of the cafe is strong. Their website says it best: like a frog using a lily pad, they are the stepping stone to the next path and are showing the world the full potential and capabilities of those who shine in a different way.
Your Turn to Hop In
No matter where you are, there are ways you can support non-profits such as The Lily Pad, but the best way for this spot is to pay them a visit.
“We want people to understand that our cafe is not just your typical restaurant,” Kristen shares. “It is a restaurant with a mission to enrich the lives of individuals who may need a little extra time and support to get them ready for working in the community and finding their purpose. Just as it took the community to get us open, it takes the community to take part in their training. Customers not only mean sales to support the mission, but also mean more hands-on experience for our interns to build upon their skills and teach the community what they are capable of.”
Kristin lovingly notes that being able to witness individuals in the program grow, thrive, and blossom into knowing what they are capable of is one of the most rewarding parts of running The Lily Pad. Additionally, she has loved “hearing parents tell us how much their children have become more active at home and are excited to go to work, all while their personalities are coming out and their confidence is growing.”
With a casual, laid-back cafe vibe, come as you are, and leave with more than you knew when you walked in, confident you made a difference for all those involved with The Lily Pad and helped show someone just how much they are capable of achieving.
| This article is presented in partnership with Explore Ridgeland, a Modern South Founding Partner.
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