Adan's Story: "This time, I had hope."
At Underground Ministries, I see the same story over and over: someone comes home from prison ready to work, and the hardest part isn't the wanting—it's the getting there. A job search with an ankle monitor. No transportation. No one who knows your name yet.
Adan Cantu lived that version of it. What got him through was a combination of his own determination, his OPOP team, and a business willing to take a chance. A village.
That's also exactly why we built Underground Employment Network: to make sure willingness to take a chance isn't left to luck. We're building structured partnerships between employers and people coming home, so the door Adan found his way through eventually can open faster, and for more people.
Here's Adan, in his own words.
Alex Sanchez
Lead Reentry Navigator, Underground Healing
My name is Adan Cantu.
I was incarcerated from 2020 until 2023. I was released on the GRE program on July 7, 2023. The GRE program, Graduated Reentry, gave me a baseline for what was to come. While I was on the GRE program, I lived in an Oxford House. Oxford Houses are homes run by the tenants that want to stay clean and sober. I was also enrolled in One Parish One Prisoner. I had a wonderful group that sent me emails and letters throughout my incarceration, I even got visits from one of them. It was the first time I ever got a visit in all the time that I've done.
By the time I was released in July of 2023, I felt completely different than the prior time I was released. This time, I had hope and I wasn't as nervous as I probably should have been. When I was released, I had a whole village behind me and that gave me strength.
While I was on GRE, I was on an ankle monitor and while I was on the ankle monitor I had to schedule anytime that I left the house. I was told by my GRE navigator that I needed to get a job to be in compliance with the program, which created a challenge. I was not able to just go out and look for work, I had to schedule every place I was going to apply to. At that point in my life, I didn't know where to even start looking. If I'm being honest, my biggest fear was that I would get sent back if I was unable to find any type of job.
Fortunately for me, I met someone that would eventually pave the way for me to get some work. Jesus Borrego: the man, the myth, the legend, “The Tondigas”... That man opened a door for me. I had no idea that door led to where I am now. I was tentatively offered a weekend position at the Whidbey Island Bagel Factory. I had never worked with dough before and I was nervous. It took me 2 weeks to be able to go to the bagel factory to meet the manager, Becky. When she met me, she heard my situation and had compassion for my circumstances. I got the job and started working 3 days a week.
I lived in a town that was about 7 miles away from the job. I was prepared to take the bus every time I had to work. Fortunately for me, my OPOP team was ready to get me to and from work. I never missed a day of work, and that's all thanks to those wonderful people. Chic Stiers would pick me up and drop me off at the bagel factory. I would work my 6 hour shift and then she would give me a ride home.
In the coming months, I was offered a full time position. I would go in and mix the dough, and I was front and center of the bagel factory. People would come in and record me doing my job without asking most of the time. It bothered me at first, I was still used to being away from people. Eventually, I got used to people coming in and asking me questions and recording me.
The bagel factory offers bagels with cream cheese and sandwiches. Becky wanted me to start helping them make food. I was hesitant because I only knew how to mix at that point. After months of her pestering me, I finally gave in and went to help them. Which helped me financially, I was put on tips. Kind of a game changer for me, I didn't even want to mix anymore. Jesse (Jesus) and I were the mixers at the Mount Vernon location and we would “fight” over who had to mix that day. I started to get close with my co-workers. I never had that, it felt great.
I started enjoying going to work and started enjoying interaction with the customers. After 14 months, I was released from GRE and I got my license. Before I was released from GRE, someone had donated a substantial amount of money to me. I used that money to buy a car. Chic no longer had to drive me to work.
I started working 8 hour shifts. Eventually, I was spending more time with my coworkers than with anyone else. In that time, I saw how well the business was doing and decided I was going to open my own someday. In 2025, both of my parents were diagnosed with different types of cancer. My dad lived in Mount Vernon but my mom lived in Texas. I was devastated but I didn't have the funds to go. The owner, John, caught wind of the situation and offered to buy my plane ticket. I went to Texas for 2 weeks and handled some difficult tasks. I came back to Washington with my son. He got a job with me and started to learn how to mix.
About a month after I came back to Washington, my mom passed away. I went to Texas again to be with my sister. After 9 days, I came back to work…my thoughts of opening my own bagel factory were put on the backburner. I would go to work and do my job and then go home in a depressed state. I was allowing my grief to take hold. Then I remembered about my dad. I had also been neglecting him, I had to snap out of it and be there for him.
We would make our monthly trips to Seattle for his treatment, and grew closer and closer. Seven months after I lost my mom, my dad passed away. I immediately went back to work. It was the only place where I was too distracted to be sad. I would go to work and then go home and stay in my room in a state of depression. I felt lost.
Then one day, my cousin sent me a post of some issues happening at the Oak Harbor location. I forwarded the messages to Becky, who was now the owner of the Mount Vernon location. John was asking her if she wanted to buy another location. She then mentioned to me that I should go to the Oak Harbor location and manage the place. I took it as a joke and laughed it off. She had to be joking. She wasn't. I thought about it and thought about it. I decided to call John and ask him if I could go manage the Oak Harbor location for him. He didn't want to take me from Becky, but I assured him that it was her idea.
Three weeks later, I left my position in the Mount Vernon location and began my position as a manager in the Oak Harbor location. Thoughts of owning my own location weren't far from my mind anymore. I had told John of my desire to open my own bagel factory about a year before I changed locations. He knew what my end goal was. I went from being a part of an amazing team, to managing a team that needed a little bit of guidance. Great workers, just no structure. I learned how to manage as fast as I could. Having a friend that started as the manager in Mount Vernon to being the owner, was very beneficial. She would give me tips on how to do certain things and I learned from John as well.
I'm proud to say that in just over 4 months time, I will be the owner of the Oak Harbor location. The dream didn't die, I just needed to be present for a rough year. I needed this job to get me through the toughest year of my life. If I'm being honest, doing this work has changed everything about me and everything I thought I wanted.
I'm beyond grateful to everyone that played a part in this success. None of the life I am living would have been possible if I hadn't made that choice to do better. If I didn't have all the support I had when I got out.
