Recent Grad Overcomes Adversity and Builds Skills for an Aramark Career

Serge Gasore, a new Aramark Accelerate To Leadership (A2L) employee, is known for his tenacity, endurance and time management skills – skills he developed while traveling a difficult path that started in Rwanda and brought him to Aramark in Texas.

Gasore, 28, is one of 400 recent college graduates selected for the A2L program, and his colleagues refer to him as an “amazing employee,” not only for his work ethic, but also for overcoming obstacles and achieving significant accomplishments during his young life.
  Born and raised in Rwanda, he lost his mother when he was only four. Just a few years later, his grandmother, who was raising him, was killed during the 1994 Rwandan Genocide, a mass slaughter of Tutsi and moderate Hutu ethnic groups. He lost several other family members as well, and suffered severe injuries. 
  Stability was eventually restored to his country, and Gasore, who was living with his uncle, vowed to himself that he would find something to better himself.
  “I started running,” he said, with a goal of running for the national team.
  He also developed an intense focus on his academics, preparing to pass the extremely challenging national exams and go on to college. He recalls waking early, running for two hours, going to class and being “very tired, very sleepy.” 
  But his strategy worked: he was selected by the national running team and was soon participating in international competitions. While competing with the team, a friend offered to reach out to American college coaches, and ultimately Gasore was offered an opportunity to run and study at Abilene Christian University, an Aramark Higher Education account. 
  “I said yes right away,” Gasore recalled, even though he had never dreamed of going to the United States.
  He pursued an undergraduate degree in psychology, then, recognizing the increasingly computer-based nature of the business world, went on to pursue a master’s degree in Global Information Technology. And all the while, he worked for Aramark.
  “I started washing dishes,” he said. “I would wake at 5, run, go to class, practice, work, and then sleep for two hours…life was like that for four years.”
  He progressed from dishwasher to the serving line, to supervisor of safety and sanitation, to concessions manager to serving supervisor. Meanwhile, he completed a second master’s degree in Global Services, and also wrote an inspirational book “My Day to Die Running for My Life,” which was published in 2012, and tells the story of the genocide and his survival. Gasore and his wife also founded a nonprofit organization Rwanda Children, to provide help to children less fortunate than he was.
    By the time he had finished his second master’s degree, Aramark had launched A2L, and Gasore was accepted into the program. He moved from Abilene Christian to Baylor All Saints Medical Center in Fort Worth, working with Aramark Facilities Services.
  “Every day is an adventure,” said Gasore of his new position. “I am in the office at 6 a.m. and I am very happy for all the hours I spend here. I am working for the best manager I’ve ever met.” He credits that manager, Derek Muldrow, with demonstrating effective and inspirational leadership.
  Muldrow says Gasore “has made an immediate impact…he’s a fast learner. It’s a pleasure to see young people with talent like that. He’s very smart, and a real go-getter.”
  Gasore says his life as an athlete prepared him well for a career at Aramark.
  “I have learned to stand firm when things go wrong. I keep going, keep pressing, keep dreaming,” he said. “I don’t waste time, and if I have an opportunity to make a change I do it. I just keep practicing because I know I can get better.”