It’s 7 a.m., and the sun barely peeks from behind the clouds on a cold and rainy Chicago morning. The only bright spot is a herd of fluorescent sweatshirts inside a cube-shaped building that resembles a hybrid storage center and ballet studio. “Ain’t Too Proud to Beg” starts rattling the walls of the stark, white building, and 23 joyful Chicagoans are singing and preparing for another day of work.

The fluorescent sweatshirts are worn by members of CleanSlate, a Chicago-based program that provides people who need, and want, a second chance at life a new start by cleaning up and beautifying the city.

CleanSlate starts every day at 7 a.m. with a tradition they call “motivation.” The goal of motivation is to get people excited to go out and work, but also make them feel good about what they are doing, said Tekorah Martin, CleanSlate’s operation specialist.

On April 14, Gregory Warren, a 53-year-old man from Chicago, was asked to stand in the middle of the motivation circle. The day’s question was, “What is one of your greatest accomplishments, and what did it take to achieve it?”

Warren, seemingly pumped up by the group’s enthusiasm, told the group of his past addictions and the time he spent in prison before he joined CleanSlate.

“I’ve been clean for two years now,” Warren said. “I’m in recovery and I take it one step at a time. My greatest accomplishment is staying clean.”

Warren then belted out the words to his favorite song, and the group joined in, while stomping and clapping in unison.

“Thanks to CleanSlate, I have accomplished things I would have never imagined,” Warren said to the group. “Every day I wake up, and it’s a day that God made—It’s a good day.”

Warren is followed by other CleanSlate members who tell their stories and sing songs. One woman said she went back to school, another man said he received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees after being put in the “slow classes” as a child, and one man, like Warren, said he faced addiction and is fighting to stay sober.

Another woman said she lives her life grateful for every day she is alive and off the streets. These accomplishments are all credited, at least in part, to their involvement with CleanSlate.

When one woman in the group said the word “try,” Martin shouted from the crowd for her to take the word back.

“The word ‘try’ is banned,” Martin said. “It’s an uncustomary cussword.”

CleanSlate members are assigned jobs for the day and head out after the motivation session. But before workers get to this point, they must go through rigorous training and classes to become members of CleanSlate.

CleanSlate is part of the Cara program in Chicago that works to help beautify the city. CleanSlate is considered an organization for “at risk” individuals who need more structure in the working world, Martin said.

“CleanSlate provides work experience and it is a paid internship,” Martin said. “[Members] have to go through Transformation first.”

Transformation is a series of classes and programs in the Cara program where members learn the skills they need to work in different areas of the city. Martin refers to the program as “a bridge to employment,” but stresses that employment is not the main goal of the program. Instead, she said, she believes community and support services provided by CleanSlate are most important.

“We do mock interviews and help with savings bonds,” Martin said. “We find a job that works for a certain person. We will never turn our back on [people].”

Warren’s assignment for April 14 was to clean the streets in the medical district. He stood outside in the cold rain and said he was hardly fazed by it. The work gives him structure, and that was the key ingredient missing in his life before CleanSlate, he said.

“[CleanSlate] has a lot of rules and regulations and you have to learn to follow those rules and take corrective criticism,” Warren said. “CleanSlate is dedicated to their workers.”

While CleanSlate operators stand by their employees, they do want them to move on and find steady work. Because of so many people finding jobs and moving on, new people are starting the program quite often, Martin said.

Marqus Chambers, 32, is one of the newest CleanSlate workers, and he is finding a new purpose in life through his new work experience.

“Before CleanSlate my life was chaotic, disorganized and had no direction,” Chambers said. “I did nine years and seven months in prison, and when I got out, I did nothing.”

As part of his release conditions, Chambers had to find a job. One day, he was walking past the CleanSlate building, 1334 S. Ashland Ave., and walked in to ask for an application. After being told he had to go through classes, Chambers contacted the Cara program and took all the necessary steps to join CleanSlate.

“I was only looking for a job, but I got much more,” Chambers said. “Since I’ve been here, I’ve got goals and I’ve got a sense of direction. I look forward to getting up in the morning.”

As for Chambers’ motivation for the day, his greatest accomplishment was getting his first paycheck. He started CleanSlate in February, and in March, he got the first paycheck of his life.

“I’d never actually worked for anything in my life,” Chambers said. “CleanSlate changes lives. I used to think you live, you die and that’s it. Now, there’s everything in between.”