Tulsa restaurant Sapori gives second chance to women with troubled pasts

A Tulsa restaurant owner is giving women a second chance after lives of addiction and time behind bars.

Al Hashemi owns Sapori on Cherry Street, and some of the employees, including his restaurant manager, are graduates of the Women in Recovery program.

The women say this job has given them purpose and hope and helps them stay on a successful, addiction-free path.

Kasey Freeman is one of those employees at Sapori. She battled addiction for 28 years, went to federal prison and has been in and out of the Tulsa County Jail 22 times. She says nothing worked, until a judge told her she had two options: go to prison or enter the Women in Recovery program.

Kasey says the Kasey today, working at Sapori that is laughing smiling and happy with herself, is the real Kasey Freeman. The old Kasey lived a life of crime and addiction.

"I just struggled my whole adult life, really from the time I was 17 until I was 42 with addiction. Alcoholism, drug addiction," said Kasey.

Kasey says nothing worked to break the cycle. She says she even moved to California to get help and was doing good, but when she came back to Oklahoma she was around old friends and fell back into the same cycle.

She says last year was the final straw for her when she was looking at going to prison for seven years or enter the Women in Recovery program.

"Judge Moody gave me the option, it was either you're gunna do this or not. If not, I'm going to put you in prison for seven years," said Kasey. "I was tired. I was mentally tired, spiritually I just wanted to throw my hands up. I think I had gotten to the point that I didn't care if I lived or died."

Kasey got a job at Sapori while she was in the program, because her former friend from the streets, Jennifer, is the restaurant manager, and also a recent graduate.

"A lot of people will look at your record and go, I'm not hiring her. But the things I did in my addiction is not who I truly am," said Kasey.

Sapori's owner Al Hashemi isn't one of those people, he believes in second chances and helping people succeed.

"I think everybody deserves to do good regardless of what their back background is," said Hashemi.

Hashemi has been in the restaurant business for more than 50 years and has hired hundreds of people, but he says these three women are some of the best employees he's ever had.

Hashemi also has a son who battled addiction and is now 10 years sober.

"I see through him how great a job he's done through the program he was in so it gives me a chance to give the same opportunities," said Hashemi. "They are very dedicated. They want to make sure they do their best, because they know this opportunity doesn't come around."

Kasey graduated the Women in Recovery program last week surrounded by family and friends who never left her side. She says her daughter broke down in tears.

"She just cried and cried and cried and I aske her what's wrong and she said I'm just so proud of you. So proud. That just made me feel amazing," said Kasey. "I'm grateful, very grateful. Very grateful."

Kasey has now been sober for 18 months, the longest of her adult life. She now hopes to use her story to help other women.