BRONX TIMES REPORTER, N 18 OVEMBER 15-21, 2019 BTR
Chipotle Mexican
Grill worker goes
from homeless to GM
BY JASON COHEN
A Bronx resident has proven that if
you put your mind to it anything can
happen.
Cheyenne Wright, 21, of University
Heights, went from being homeless to
now on the verge of becoming a general
manager at Chipotle Mexican Grill,
making her the youngest in NYC.
Wright, who grew up in Queens,
never imagined things would turn out
this way. She took a job as a senior in
high school at Chipotle in Forest Hills
and fi gured she would make some extra
cash to buy sneakers and go to the
movies, but it turned into much more.
After graduating from Flushing
High School in Queens, she moved to
Florida with her mom Valerie. Things
were not ideal there.
She had no car, wasn’t in school and
the highlight of her day was going to
Wal-Mart.
So, she returned to Queens and
moved in with her sister Dorian, 25.
She got her job back at Chipotle, but
quickly her sister’s living situation
fell apart and she had no place to live.
So, for about six months she slept on
friends’ couches and times were hard.
Staying determined, she told her
boss Franco Ochoa about being homeless
and he was willing to give her
more hours and even overtime. Ochoa
didn’t need to care, but instead showed
empathy, she recalled.
“He was somebody who helped
me greatly in this process,” she explained.
Being homeless was not easy. She
carried her belongings with her everywhere
and it was physically and emotionally
draining.
In addition to Franco, she expressed
gratitude to a close friend Sabrina,
who let her stay at her grandfather’s
house for two months while she
worked in Forest Hills.
From homeless to Chipotle general manager,
Cheyenne Wright.
Photo courtesy of Chipotle Mexican Grill
Eventually, she was transferred to
a store in Manhattan.
She continued to work hard at
Chipotle and went from crewmember
to kitchen manager, service manager,
and now an apprentice to general manager.
She knows the fundamentals
of the store, how to treat people, do a
schedule and be a leader.
During this process, she also met
her girlfriend, a Chipotle employee.
The duo moved in together eight
months ago in the Bronx.
Wright stressed how much she loves
living in University Heights.
“I really love the culture,” she said.
Looking back, she still is in awe
of how things are in her life. Chipotle
was just supposed to be a high school
job, but it turned into much more.
“My mom’s really proud of me,” she
commented. “I’m really proud of myself
as well. It always gets worse before
it gets better.”
Today, she works Monday through
Friday, wakes up at 6 a.m. and manages
37 people. But, she loves her job.
She was even recognized recently
in a commercial in Chipotle’s national
advertising campaign, Behind
the Foil, which features its real employees
across the U.S. and recently
launched. You can see it here: https://
bit.ly/2J03qjP.
With a bright further ahead of her,
she is ready for next role in the company.
“Chipotle isn’t made for everybody,
but I think it’s made for me,” Wright
said. “I would stay with Chipotle my
whole life, but I also want to open my
own business.”
She told her boss
Franco Ochoa about
being homeless and he
was willing to give her
more hours and even
overtime. Ochoa didn’t
need to care, but instead
showed empathy.
Cheyenne Wright
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