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By Brian Blackwell, Message Staff Writer
SHREVEPORT – It’s just before 10 a.m. and Sonya Booty has stopped inside the Well coffee shop for a mid-morning pick-me-up.
A few moments later her friend Cindi Doeker joins her for some fellowship and a cup of coffee.
Neither are members of Brookwood Baptist in Shreveport, where the Well is located, but frequent the establishment because of what they say is its great coffee, ambiance, service to the community and ministry efforts for the people of Rwanda.
“We come here all the time and love that we support missions by buying coffee,” Booty said. “Since I’m going to buy coffee anyway somewhere I might as well where my money goes to a good cause.
“Plus, I enjoy meeting all kinds of people here,” she continued. “They are such a blessing to our area.”
Since it opened in 2009, the Well’s coffee sales have provided annual salaries for 11 Rwandan coffee farmers.
Additionally, garage sales by Brookwood members along with money from various outside sales such as catering events has help provide funding for 33 bikes for Rwandan coffee growers and three dormitories for orphans.
The Well – formerly six Sunday school classrooms now converted into one large coffee shop space at the church – purchases coffee from Land of a Thousand Hills, which was launched in 2004 to help Rwanda rebuild through reconciliation. Well manager Kris Ricketts – along with baristas from the coffee shop – have even traveled to Rwanda to meet some of those farmers from whom they purchase coffee.
Though they may not be able to help the vast majority of Rwandans, Ricketts said the coffee shop that is open five days a week is providing what it can to spread Christ’s love to a country that has been involved in a deadly civil war that resulted in more than a million people killed there.
“For us, the Well has given us a different venue to share the gospel and partner with a company that is helping Rwanda heal and rebuild,” Ricketts said. “Many members from our church have gotten behind our efforts to help Rwandans.”
The Well is just one of many coffee shops operated by Louisiana Baptist churches and ministries, each distinct in its days, hours of operation and how its serves its local community and beyond. Here are two other examples:
Metairie
Further south, Celebration Church in Metairie operates its café on Wednesday and Saturday evenings and on Sunday mornings. The café staff serves pastries, Chick-fil-A sandwiches, Dominos pizza, snacks and, of course, coffee and other drinks before and after services.
Celebration’s Cafe hopes to extend hours to one additional evening during the week and in the mornings when parents of the church’s school drop off their children for classes.
Before Hurricane Katrina devastated the New Orleans area and the church, Celebration’s café area was undergoing a renovation. After a post-storm five-year hiatus, the church and café were blessed with a new facility.
All proceeds are used for maintenance of equipment and to support local and international missions.
Blanchard
For its part, the Orchard uses coffee to reach the community. Located near and operated by First Baptist Blanchard, the Orchard serves free coffee and snacks five mornings a week.
Ron Killingsworth, a member of the church and volunteer at the Orchard, said he has shared the gospel with people who have stopped in before.
“I like coffee, visiting with people and the opportunity to share the Lord with people,” Killingsworth said. “If someone comes in a stranger, they don’t leave a stranger.
“We’re open in the mornings, so it’s natural that people drink coffee, and that allows us to shake their hand, find out about them and discuss the Lord or whatever else is happening in their life,” he said. “Over a period of time we’ll develop a relationship with folks and that’s one of the reasons we are here.”
But the Orchard goes much farther than serving coffee from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. Monday through Friday. The building – which before opening as the Orchard in 2011 was a fitness center and church on separate occasions – also is home to a clothes closet, food pantry, computer lab and meeting space.
Dale Sauls, minister of education and associate pastor at First Blanchard, said they are thankful the Orchard can meet so many needs in the community.
“Those who are helped through the different ministries within the Orchard seem very grateful,” Sauls said. “It’s been a wonderful way for our people to get involved for the good of the community.”