Coffee has become a viable avenue to gainful employment for at-risk individuals. We’ve seen it for formerly incarcerated individuals, at-risk youth, those facing mental health challenges, folks experiencing homelessness, as well as immigrants and refugees. And in Fort Worth, Texas, an all-new coffee event this week focuses on disadvantaged youth.
Hosted by the Inner City Coffee Exchange, the inaugural Youth Coffee Expo looks to provide “an opportunity to cultivate careers in specialty coffee” to young people who may not realize currently see it as a viable option.
Taking place Thursday, October 17th at the Texans Can Academy, the theme of the first Youth Coffee Expo is “From the Crop To The Cup: Cultivating Careers in Coffee for Children” and will feature insights from industry leaders around the state representing a wide swath of the supply chain. Guests include Eric Brenner, the Assistant Director of Texas A&M University’s Center for Coffee Research and Education; Rodrigo Chavez, owner of What’s the Buzz Coffee Company; Gladys Lee, Hall of Fame coach and golfer and namesake of Gladys Lee Specialty Coffee; and Pastor Kyev Tatum, founder of Inner City Coffee Exchange.
As part of the mission to use specialty coffee as a means to gainful employment, the Youth Coffee Expo also seeks to “stimulate the inner-city economy [by] introducing the world of specialty coffee to inner-city residents.”
It all takes place between 10:00am and 2:00pm on Thursday, October 17th at the Texans Can Academy in Fort Worth, Texas. For more information, reach out to Pastor Kyev Tatum directly.
Zac Cadwalader is the managing editor at Sprudge Media Network and a staff writer based in Dallas. Read more Zac Cadwalader on Sprudge.
