Nearly $300,000 Raised to Reopen Gutted Bakery

Corporate sponsors and local residents have raised nearly $300,000 to reopen a gutted Boyle Heights bakery that provided work and job training for former gang members, officials said Thursday.

Homeboy Bakery, which employed 11 ex-gang members, closed last month after an electrical fire caused more than $40,000 in damage to the bakery’s front office and packaging area.

Father Gregory Boyle, who started the bakery and several other businesses for ex-gang members, said he wants to reopen the bakery at a new location because it would be too expensive to rebuild the 70-year-old structure.

Boyle estimates that it will cost $1 million to open a larger, refurbished bakery in an existing building somewhere in Boyle Heights.

He said neighbors and other supporters have contributed about $100,000.

Boyle’s efforts will get a big boost today when Miller Brewing Co. is expected to announce it has collected $100,000 in donations from several Southern California corporations. In addition, the brewing company will issue a $100,000 challenge grant, to be matched by community contributions.

Assemblyman Gilbert Cedillo (D-Los Angeles), who represents Boyle Heights, said he is working to secure additional government funds to help Boyle meet his $1-million goal.