Everyone has a story to tell which can inspire and ignite us into action.

If you ask him, Mikey will tell you that he is just a man trying to work in the community and make a name for himself. If you ask his business coach, she will tell you that Mikey is an amazing person who deserves everything he has worked so hard for. Of course they are both right.

Michael Gauthier, or Mikey as he prefers to be called, likes to smile and talk to people about their dreams. Mikey is a big believer in dreams and goals. When he came to the Customized Employment Options program two years ago, he had a dream, and it was a big one. He wanted to own and operate a hot dog stand. "Like the ones you see in New York" he said at the time. He said that even when he was a young man he just always wanted to own a hot dog stand, and he always dreamed about owning his own business and being his own boss. Now there were a lot of ‘strikes' against Mikey owning a hot dog stand…money, regulations, logistics. But inevitably none of those hurdles stopped him from cutting his ceremonial ribbon launching Mikey's Hot Dog Stand in January 2009.

Mikey and his microenterprise team at Goodwill worked tirelessly to obtain every permit under the sun to open a hot dog cart in Bakersfield. Mikey went diligently to all of the necessary financial classes and food handling classes necessary to open his business. He worked daily with his Business Coach to make decisions on the direction of his business. And he does it with a smile and confidence, confidence he continues to share with the Goodwill team.

It has been a very long year of business for Mikey. He has endured a lot of successes and challenges along the way; he continues to work daily with his Business Coach. Among the many high points of Mikey's first year of business are the many, many accolades that he has gotten from the community. He was invited to set up his hot dog cart during the inaugural season for the Division I Cal State Bakersfield Roadrunner Men's Baseball. The team awarded him Vendor of the Year and he is confident that he will be asked back next season to cheer on the Roadrunners and sell his Mikey Dogs!

But at the heart of it all is the simple truth, of a man who wants to make a difference in his community. He strives daily to work with his Business Coach, to inspire others to better their own path, and to never stop dreaming...big.