Host Ali Nazar interviews Rachel Taber and Doug Hewitt, founders of 1951 Coffee Company in Berkeley, which is a non-profit focused on providing job training and employment to refugees and asylees in the Bay Area.
TRANSCRIPT
Speaker 1:[inaudible],
Speaker 2:you're listening to k a l x Berkeley 90.7 FM, university of California listener supported radio. And this is a method to the madness coming at you from the Public Affairs Department here at Calex celebrating the innovative spirit of the bay area. I'm your host Ali Nasar. [00:00:30] And today in studio we have with us Rachel Taber and Doug Hewitt, the cofounders of 1951 coffee company here in Berkeley. Hi Rachel. Hi Doug. Hello. Good morning. Uh, thanks for coming in. Um, and the first question I always ask founders, we've had a lot of founders on the show and we always start with the same question, which is people create organizations for usually cause they see a problem and there's something they're trying to have a vacuum they're trying to fill. So, uh, can you guys [00:01:00] explain to us what is the problem that you're trying to solve with 1951 coffee?
Speaker 3:Yeah, I can get started on it. Uh, Doug and I met while working at the international rescue committee, which is a global nonprofit that does humanitarian aid internationally and also has, um, dozens of offices across the u s that help resettle refugees. And I'd always been more on the volunteer coordinating and fundraising and operations side. And Doug was more deeply involved in employment [00:01:30] and resettlement and more of the hands on service and Hawaii office together a ton. And our programs overlapped. And I think for both of us, we, we saw the Herculean effort that resettlement agencies provide and what they're aiming to help with a refugee arriving. And there's just, there's not enough service providers, there's not enough people out there helping refugees. And so when a refugee arrives on the u s the US State Department sets the program [00:02:00] and they set it that the average amount that person will get arriving in the country, it's about a thousand dollars per person to restart their life.
Speaker 3:And that amount doesn't really change depending on what city you're in in the u s and as you can imagine, that is not enough. It has to be used to help someone find a new apartment to help with clothing, supplies, transportation. And it has to be some money left over for spending. And so because of how the resettlement program is set up from the u s government, it [00:02:30] makes employment the most critical piece for refugee once they arrive in the u s and that's kind of, that was the crux of where we saw a lot of the needs.
Speaker 2:Yeah. So the, the u s government expects for a refugee to be economically self sufficient within six months. Uh, that's the goal. And so that challenge is one that, that we saw that there needed to be a resource in the community, uh, that could help refugees overcome some of the barriers between them and the u s
Speaker 4:[00:03:00] job market. And some of the things that we had seen, um, were, you know, not having references, not having verifiable, uh, work experience. And so we began to look and see if there was a way that we could create something in the community that would be a bridge between what the refugee resettlement agencies were doing and what us employers. Uh, we're, we're looking for, uh, in staff members. And so, um, we decided to, to create 1951 coffee company to kind of be that, that bridge between those two. Yeah. That's amazing. [00:03:30] And can you tell us what is 90 51 coffee? Why was it named that?
Speaker 3:Uh, Doug came up with it, so I have to give him credit. And for anyone that's worked in the refugee resettlement world, you know, the date. And so there's maybe like 0.5% of the population that understands it, but it's the year that the UN held a convention in Geneva, Switzerland with the well over, I think 140 or 50 nations. And it set forth the definition, a legal definition for refugees and a guideline for their protection. And the linchpin of [00:04:00] that convention is something called [inaudible], which means that a nation that signs on to the agreement of protecting refugees cannot send someone home if they're there seeking asylum and protection from a fear of death in their own country or persecution. And what is the definition of refugee? It is, sorry, this is, I had, I had to memorize this recently for a presentation. Um, it is someone who owing to a well founded fear of persecution based on the reasons of race, religion, nationality and membership [00:04:30] of a particular social group or political opinion is outside of his or her country. And because of such fear they are unable or unwilling to avail themselves to their home country for protection. So it's basically someone facing persecution for these reasons. Race, religion, nationality, political group, social, you know, social group and they fear persecution or death in their home country and so greatly so that they leave and they have to leave. That's part of the definition.
Speaker 4:And what is the U N program? [00:05:00] Um, the, I mean I'm assuming that it's not binding. It's a set of guidelines for countries that have signed on to the charter. Is that how it works? Right, right. So initially the, um, in 1951, it was looking at what was happening with World War II and a lot of it focused mainly on, on Europe. Um, later conventions came along and then the 1967 protocols came along that ultimately expanded to a global mandate. Um, but again, it is a, an agreement that people, uh, countries have signed on to, [00:05:30] um, to participate in the, uh, protection of refugees, of people who are fleeing, um, for, for reasons, as Rachel said, for persecution, for fear of death. Um, and a way to protect people in, in dire situations. Yeah. And, um, you know, we want to talk a little bit, I mean, it's, this is a problem that the world has seen for a long time. This is, as you said, in response somewhat to World War II, but right now we're seeing one of the greatest refugee crisis in history. And so I want to get to modern day, uh, the modern [00:06:00] day problems. And what'd you guys do in solving the second? But first I always want to ask founders, cause I think there's such an interesting breed of people who, uh, put things on the line to create something. And, um, so let's hear a little bit about your guys' sells. How about you first, Rachel, how did you come to working with refugees?
Speaker 3:Uh, how did I, it was a dear friend of mine that we had met doing fundraising together. Um, I started a nonprofit straight out of college and doing grant writing and social enterprise work. And my husband's Grad school pulled [00:06:30] us out to the bay area. We were in Denver at the time, uh, and we took a day to figure out where to live and we decided it was Berkeley and we've been here for a decade now. And while doing, um, fundraising and development for a nonprofit in Walnut Creek, a dear friend of mine got hired at the IRC and I had been an international affairs major in college at, at UC Boulder. And they had a great program where they would host lost boys of Sudan. Uh, which a lot of people have heard of that documentary or [inaudible] of the fact that there were [00:07:00] thousands of orphan boys because of the conflict in Sudan.
Speaker 3:And so families would host them and they would do a work study program. And a lot of them studied political science or international affairs in the hopes of going back home one day and you know, being the future leaders of their country. And so that was my first exposure to it. And so there was an open position at IRC and my friends slowly, um, pulled me back in and it was a great moment to kind of get more on the front lines and reconnect with what had been my collegiate passionate. And can you tell us what, what's IRC? [00:07:30] Oh, it's the international rescue committee and they're the, are they the biggest refugee resettlement organizations in America or, I'd say they're one of the leading, there's nine a, they're called voluntary agencies that are contracted with the US State Department to conduct the refugee resettlement program. Um, and I believe they have 25 30 offices around the U S in a humongous global presence. Okay. And my favorite part of that story, one of my favorite parts took you only a day to figure out live in Berkeley's. Yeah. John. Thank you. Uh,
Speaker 4:Doug, what about you? How'd [00:08:00] you get to work with refugees? Yes. So I started working with refugees actually in a very literal sense. Um, I was working at a cafe and, uh, mill valley and there was a young man who had been hired to, to work there while I was, was there and we were, they had two cash registers and we were working side by side. And um, in, in getting to know him, you know, I could just interacting with them, I, I could tell, you know, we were originally was not from the United States. And, um, one day over lunch we had a lunch break at the same time and he, [00:08:30] I just asked, you know, how did you come to the u s and he began to share with me his story about coming from Eritrea and how he fled across borders and eventually boarded a boat to try to cross the Mediterranean, his journey.
Speaker 4:Um, through that, you know, while we were sitting or there in that 30 minute break, uh, in mallet mill valley just completely changed, uh, the way that I had seen the world. I had never sat and talked with someone who had been on a journey like that. Um, and hearing his firsthand account and all the he had been through. And then to see that we were both roughly the same age, [00:09:00] both of us love playing soccer. Uh, we were working in the same job. I had come to that position from very, very different, uh, situations. Um, I began, we became really good friends, uh, began to get to know his community more. Um, and at that point it really just inspired me to, to see that there was a place that I had to, to be involved there. And so I also, um, found out about the international rescue committee, one of their offices we're in, we're in Oakland.
Speaker 4:And so I began the process of volunteering with them, teaching English, uh, mentoring, uh, [00:09:30] new refugees coming to the country. And then eventually, um, after spending a stent, a roasting coffee for about a year, uh, spend, uh, I began working at international rescue committee and I was really just right, kind of put down my roots. Okay, great. We're talking to Doug Hewitt and Rachel Taber, they're the co founders of 1951 coffee. It's a coffee shop and nonprofit here in Berkeley, um, that is, uh, focused on providing, um, job training and, um, like comically resettling refugees here in the bay area. [00:10:00] Um, and so I think I might have know the answer to this, but I wanted to ask it anyway just by what you just said. Doug, why coffee? So I understand why you guys are trying to create jobs for refugees, but you had to, you could create any business in the world.
Speaker 4:Why'd you create a coffee business? Yeah, so I think that, um, one, Rachel and I both love coffee. Even when we were working at our previous jobs, uh, we kinda did a, an informal survey of all the coffee that was around our office. And so we kind of had our [00:10:30] all thing on our whiteboard at work. Um, but I think, you know, as we began to look at the skills that we had, um, both of us had worked in coffee before, had been in Baristas. I had roasted coffee before. Um, we knew that that was something that we could teach and train people. And we also knew from previous experience that the coffee industry here in the bay area is, is huge. Um, everything from the green coffee warehouses that are, that are in Oakland. Um, and because of those warehouses are there, there's a lot of roasters that have a presence here in this area.
Speaker 4:[00:11:00] And then, you know, having a massive number of cafes, um, Berkeley is known for having the largest number of cafes per capita of anywhere in the country. Um, and so in places like San Francisco and Oakland are very similar to that. Um, and so we knew that it was an opportunity, you know, if we could help refugees enter into the coffee industry here, especially, um, it could be an opportunity for them to intern, not just into, uh, an entry level job, but something that could be an entrance into a career as well. And just [00:11:30] beyond the fact that it's not only a career economically, it is truly the best position someone can get when they arrive in the u s and I think that as we talk with people more about the challenges that are so unique and inherent to the refugee population, it just, it's, it's eye opening to a lot of people because when you come to the u s you need to find a job. And we had talked about some of the challenges earlier,
Speaker 3:but it's just compounded by the fact that a refugee has this economic crisis and they arrive that that resettlement money, [00:12:00] they get get spent so quickly because it's so expensive to live here. And no matter what a person's background, we someone could have been an agriculture their entire life with a couple of years of formal education and now they're here in the u s and another person could have two PhDs and you know, fabulous, you know, high level career and they will both need to get a job within the same amount of time. And that time is so short that there's absolutely zero ability for them to wait for long hiring processes [00:12:30] to go through long job skills training programs. And so vast majority above 90% 95 a hundred percent half, they will find an entry level position. That is all they have the time for and they have the needs so immediately and we felt that there was an opportunity to help someone get a better job and not just economically and economically Baristas make sense.
Speaker 3:You know, minimum wage hovers around 1250 right now, you know, it's lb increasing soon in Berkeley and other areas. But a Barista gets hired at about 13 to $15 an hour [00:13:00] so that just hands down is higher. But additionally it's a tipped position and there is a income survey by a coffee publication a few years back and San Francisco and Oakland are the first and third respective highest Barista incomes across the country and tips at around $4 per hour. And so if you're looking, and I was a credit coach that my ended my time at the IRC. And when you're looking at someone that's working, probably one and a half jobs, two jobs, making 1250 an hour versus [00:13:30] $17 an hour is huge. And that's a big difference. In addition to just the economic factor, I think something that Degen I felt very passionate is we would meet incredible people like just spirit and this drive to do something and we would find them in jobs that aren't bad.
Speaker 3:I mean not bad jobs at ones that wouldn't push them to integrate in their new community. And that's a lovely thing about the coffee culture in the bay area and in the u s is that becomes your third place. That's that [00:14:00] you have your Barista, you have your drink, you know those names. And so the ability to kind of reach across the bar and create those dignified relationships both with your coworkers behind and with the people that are visiting the cafe is just a level of social integration that is not available in jobs right now. I've always found that the best ideas are ones that seem really obvious after they've been created. One more than the way you talk about it. It means a ton of sense. One thing that doesn't make sense to me is if the resettlement program, [00:14:30] I'll use $1,000 and there's this economic clock ticking. Why would any refugees come to the bay area? I mean it's so expensive. Here's what, how does that work? How do they choose the geography of the country to go to? So there, there is some level of um, study so that a refugee has and where they end up very often during the resettlement they being asked
Speaker 4:questions about, you know, do you have family members already located in specific countries? Um, and then there are also, you know, different countries who accept [00:15:00] refugees for resettlement. They have different criteria, um, and they will accept different types of refugees or have priorities toward different types of refugees. Um, and so that can kind of, you know, funnel down who, who goes where. Um, ultimately, you know, there's a, a process that the resettlement agencies go through and the, the u s government goes through, they, you know, they meet together and they talk about each case and they discuss, you know, which case would be a best fit for which location. Now, if a refugee happens to have family member or friends, um, living in a specific area, [00:15:30] you know, that'll be a place where they were more than likely to end up. So very often here in the bay area, that'll, that'll be, you know, a large number of the cases.
Speaker 4:They have family members or friends who have already been here, resettled and maybe in earlier resettlement, um, you know, processes or, um, maybe they came, you know, a year, six months before. Um, and then sometimes it is just a process of this seems to be the location where they could be served the best. Um, and yes, it is an expensive process to resettle people here, but you know, all the agencies [00:16:00] are looking at trying to find the best fit for the specific case. They're getting their given details on the case. Um, and they're trying to find the best location to, to help someone get, get started and you know, the bay area for, for its difficulty economically. It does provide an opportunity for people who want to live in a very diverse place to be welcomed. And I think that's, that's one aspect of socialization here. Um, and the welcome for people from very diverse backgrounds, um, kind of balances out that economic hardship in some ways. [00:16:30] Yeah, that's a really interesting point because,
Speaker 2:um, of with all the politicization of this issue these days, especially from, uh, he who will not be named as our president, um, I, I wonder what would happen to refugees in parts of the country that have been kind of whipped up in this fear or against refugees, but probably have never met one and have no personal connection to them. It's almost like they would, they would do better to actually interact with the refugee [00:17:00] or someone who's not like them. But that's a lot to ask of of someone who's trying to start a new life. I mean, is there in, in deep red states, are, is IRC or other programs, are they settling refugees there or is it only in places like, like you said, Doug were, there's a little bit more of a, um, a diverse and progressive bias. So
Speaker 4:refugee resettlement is taking place in about 200 cities across the country. Uh, which means inevitably it is going to be in places that, you know, some places that are very [00:17:30] supportive, some places that are not so supportive of the process. Um, and you know, refugee resettlement agencies all across the country are, you know, have that key piece in mind. You know, how do we effectively resettle people here in a way that this, you know, this larger community around, they're becoming a part of that larger community and not, you know, creating these two different within one location. Um, and so you'll see that a lot of, a lot of resettlement agencies will, will do as much as they can to kind of pound the pavement and get local buy-in, um, [00:18:00] find, you know, organization groups of people, um, to, to welcome refugees and be a part of that.
Speaker 4:Welcoming process. Cause there's a very big difference when, you know, as an agency or a government entity, you come in and be like, we're going to resettle refugees in this location versus going into that community, getting buy in from the community and say, Hey, will you be a part of the welcoming process? You know, it's the same thing going into someone's home. If you just barge in the front door, it's very different than if you, you know, that person invites you into their home. And so that's a role that the refugee [00:18:30] resettlement agencies often play is working with that larger community too, to find a way for them to be involved in that welcome process. Um, and at that point, you know, you then to have, have that more buy in. Um, and I think it kind of eases that process and does create that opening year that you were talking about for people to get to know people
Speaker 2:well who are, who are different from them. Yeah. It's a, it's really amazing that the work you guys do in this whole process. I'm learning a lot about this morning, we're talking to Doug Hewitt and Rachel Taber. They are the cofounders of 1951 [00:19:00] coffee company, let's say, nonprofits started here in Berkeley to help integrate refugees into the bay area. Um, so, you know, we talked a lot about the kind of a global or you know, macro issues here, but let's talk about some of the stories. I'm sure you guys have some amazing stories of people who have worked in your shop. You guys started in 2015. Is that right?
Speaker 3:Well, the, we quit our jobs to find or launch 1951 in 2015 but at the cafe only opened about four months ago. And [00:19:30] serendipitously we opened three days before the first failed travel again. Uh, so the cafe arm of what we're doing is new. Prior to that, um, you know, 2015 was a lot of business planning and incorporating and curriculum development. In 2016 we started a Barista training program, which Doug teaches and facilitates. And the thought behind it was, you know, when we first we first put our stake in the ground and you know, started meeting in our, you know, small little broken folding chairs, startup office, [00:20:00] um, with the coffee shop and, and it would be not only a place to help the greater community and the refugee community intersect and allow it to be an advocacy moment and provide job opportunities. And as we started getting deeper into it, we're like, great.
Speaker 3:Even if it's just the most slamming busy cafe in Berkeley, maybe out of Maxville employ 13, 15 people and each one of those souls and people are important and wonderful, but that is a smaller impact than the number of people arriving and that we were hoping to effect. [00:20:30] And so while we were waiting for the notoriously long Berkley permit process to go, uh, we started at a job turning program and there is a church in Oakland called regeneration, uh, right by lake merit. And they have a coffee shop. It's beautiful and large and they only use it on Sundays. And so they rent it to us for Monday through Friday. And we hold a two week course that provides around 40 hours of job skill training, vocational, English, customer service, US workforce, cultural orientation [00:21:00] and job placement assistance. And so we've had around 50 people graduate from that class in the last year and a half. And we have amazing employment partners including blue bottle, Starbucks, Dropbox, and some other local cafes around the bay area.
Speaker 4:So I would assume that most of the people with the refugees going through your program and they're not of the double phd style. Um, is that, is that a good assumption or if you're training them to go into, sorry, be Baristas. Um, are they more of the people who didn't have [00:21:30] a profession from where they're coming from? So we've actually, we've trained, um, quite a few people. Um, we've trained people who, you know, they were, you know, had never really held a job at all before. Um, and we've trained people. We had a medical doctor go through our training. We had, um, an actor, a, I go through our training, we've had engineers go through our training. Um, so we've had the whole, the whole gamut of the varieties of different people going through our training because again, everyone who is arriving in the country, they need [00:22:00] to get a job and they need to get as soon as possible.
Speaker 4:And what we are providing through that training is we can be a reference for them. We can be a local us reference that will help them get that initial job. We had a, uh, a guy that worked with us for a while at our cafe before he moved. Um, and he had gone through 15 different job interviews. He was the head of HR for a global hotel in his home country. Um, but he went through 15 different interviews here and needed to get a job very quickly. And very often the response was, it's gonna take some [00:22:30] time to go through this process or you're overqualified, sorry, this isn't going to work out. And so for him to be able to go through our training to get a job, to be able to get started for him was, was huge. Um, and so, you know, that's the situation that, you know, a lot of people are in, you know, they need something just to get moving, just to get started. And the, all the other career pieces, the longterm things will figure themselves out once they get that stabilized. And Are you guys, uh, do you have a plan to track what happens? I mean, are [00:23:00] they, are they part of like a alumni club or,
Speaker 3:yeah, we know. And I think the wonderful part about the program is it's, it's two weeks and it's intense and you're there every day and you're highly caffeinated and we provide snacks and we have a, it's really fun. There's a ton of comradery. And so, you know, Justin natural black, we have a fun Facebook group and people come back to the cafe that's now open and grab a coffee and we stay in touch with most people. And you know, to start, we had to be pretty scrappy, um, because starting a nonprofit and a coffee [00:23:30] shop is hyper expensive. And I had done fundraising for a lot of my life. Um, and so that came in to help. But a lot of our foundations do want to see longitudinal outcomes. And we just are coming up at about a year and a half that the program has been running. And we are starting to see some of that. And I think one of the amazing parts of people that are coming in new to this country is, is they want stuff, they want someone to invest in them and they want to invest somewhere. And even if it is for, you know, that year or two or a couple, [00:24:00] um, they'll pop, people stick at those jobs and they love them. And like, we just had one of our early job placements with blue bottle celebrate his first year. And you know, and that's, that's just really exciting.
Speaker 4:Yeah, it's a, it sounds like there's going to be lots of opportunity for you guys to have celebrate success stories and, um, and provide even maybe more services. And, um, is the idea that the curriculum that you developed could be something that would be shared across other parts of the country? [00:24:30] And is this something, is that the designs that you guys have? Yes. So we've, we've put a lot of thought into, you know, how we want to grow, you know, 1951 and we realize, you know, from having been in a network, you know, with or with refugee resettlement agencies and knowing that there are 200 cities across the country where refugees are being resettled. And knowing that coffee is something that permeates the u s life and culture. I mean, that's one of the first things we do when we wake up in the morning as find our cup of coffee.
Speaker 4:And so we know that there is an opportunity for this training [00:25:00] to, to be taken and expanded into other locations. And so that's something that we're, we're actively looking for those, those partners and other locations that we can, you know, go in and help something get started. Um, that is our, that is our goal right now and we're looking, you know, actively for that. Um, and so yeah, we're, we're definitely open to that and actively pursuing it. Alright, cool. Well, I wanted to ask you guys about world refugee day that's coming up on June 20th I believe. So just in a couple of weeks. Uh, so tell us about what, what that is and what 1951 [00:25:30] doing, uh, in regards to that. Right. So, um, World Refugee Day is on, uh, June 20th. And you know, we have a variety of, uh, events that we have going on. I actually, throughout the summer, uh, one of the things we have going on right now is, uh, a travel with us campaign is actually our, um, one of our senior Baristas came up with the campaign in order to, to highlight the six different countries, uh, that we have people, um, from that work in our, our cafe.
Speaker 4:And so each week, throughout the summer, they're taking a different week and they're highlighting either food [00:26:00] beverages, uh, cultural items from, from their countries. So right now, um, we have, uh, Butan as the country this week. Next week will be Burma. And then so on going through our, uh, we have our, our Instagram accounts in our Facebook accounts, we kind of have a calendar of, of all those things going on during world refugee week. Um, we're going to be involved in a few different things. We have some, some groups coming in, uh, to kind of hold some informational things so that they can learn more about refugees and having our, uh, Baristas, uh, she kind of share some of their information and stories. [00:26:30] Uh, and then we also have, um, some programs that are going gonna do kind of throughout that day, um, leading up to the evening. And so, um, yeah, you should definitely come by and check it out.
Speaker 3:Yup. It's hard this year at World Refugee Day falls during Ramadan and a lot of refugees that come are Muslim. And so it is a more interesting year to have it because there's not as many, you know, activities for everyone to participate in during the day. So. Okay. Well, um, that sounds like there's lots of ways for [00:27:00] people to get involved and it sounds like, uh, the best way to get to follow you guys as social media on Instagram or Facebook. And I think, you know, we have so many people that reach out to us and say, what can we do? We want to help the situation and what and weave that. I mean once you talk to someone and explain to them who a refugee is, what they've been through and why they are here, I have yet to ever meet someone. Doesn't matter where I am in the country or where they're from that isn't like I support that and I want to help and we wanted to do is make it easier for someone to [00:27:30] feel like they could have an impact on someone's life.
Speaker 3:And so by just coming in and doing your regular, no selfish but you know your regular caffeine purchase and you're actually putting money right into the pocket of refugees that are new here and a need, that sort of economic boost. And something that's been really fun for us to see now that we're running into our fifth six month of operation is our payroll is $20,000 a month and that's $20,000 of wages and health benefits and other supports that our staff get. [00:28:00] And as a nonprofit when you come in, you're buying your cup, your milk, your beans, and then you are giving money to people who want a dignified job, want respect and, and love it and want to be there. And so it's just our call to action is like, please just come grab a coffee, make us your regular caffeine fix when you're driving around and are thinking of, or where can I have that meeting?
Speaker 3:It's, it's a, it's easy to do. We all buy coffee and there's parking right below the cafe, which is hard to find sometimes in the day area. The cafe [00:28:30] is at 24, 10 chatting way. Uh, so we're right across from unit three housing, uh, right next to Beverly Cleary. Um, yeah. So just a few blocks from here. Yeah. Yep. We're just about half block down from telegraph. Great. And I always close the interview with this. We've been talking to Doug Hewitt and Rachel taper. They're the cofounders of 1951 coffee company right here in Berkeley. A nonprofit that helps refugees, gets their lives started here in America. Um, I always end with this question. You guys have started this thing from scratch [00:29:00] and you're in the heat of the battle right now, getting it launched. That's always fun. Congratulations. By the way, it's not easy to get to where you've gone.
Speaker 3:Um, but let's just fast forward five years from now and everything breaks perfectly for you guys. Where would 1951 coffee company B then? I think that we would, you know, as we, as we grow, um, I think that we would, we would really like to see our training program, you know, open in other cities to be able to have an access [00:29:30] and have a flow of, of refugees being trained and placed in the coffee industry and those locations. We've kind of looked at some different cities, Seattle, San Diego, uh, Dallas, Washington, D C But we're also open to
Speaker 4:a lot of other places that the opportunities could, could arise. Um, I think in addition to that, being able to, you know, open, you know, one cafe in some of those, those cities as well. Um, it would be something that we would like to do in order to have a, a physical presence there as a representation to the larger business [00:30:00] community of what it can look like for refugees to be, to be working in your space. You know, we run the cafe here. Everyone who works there is a refugee and they're doing a great job. And I think that's important for the business community to see when they're looking to hire one or two or three refugees to, to be a part of their, their work. And so I think that's something we would like to do. And then just having that physical presence as, as an advocacy point.
Speaker 4:Um, because you know, when someone says, you know, I want to support refugees, what do I do? They can immediately just walk into the, you know, the office of, you know, one of the resettlement agencies and be like, I'm [00:30:30] here. What do I do? Um, but with a cafe they can walk in, they can immediately purchase that cup of coffee and begin to have an impact right away, get to know the Baristas, learn about the community. And so we would like to continue to have that same impact in other places as well. Doug and I made a deal that if this goes on 10 years, we're going to get a tattoo of our 1951 logo. So that's what I look forward to seeing were tugs. Can you get us down to very practical? Well, that was Doug Hewett [00:31:00] and Rachel tape, one of the cofounders of 1951 coffee company right here in Berkeley. A two, four, four one chanting, is that right? 24, 10 24 10 chanting. And how do they find you on Instagram? Just 1951 1951 coffee, uh, on Instagram. On Facebook. Uh, and on Twitter. Alright, everybody go get your coffee from 1951 coffee. And you've been listening to method to the madness here in Kale, x, Berkeley, 90.7 FM. Have a great Friday. Everybody.
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