Last week, Hurricane Helene made landfall in the United States, devastating communities across the southeast. The total impact of the hurricane is still unknown, but over 100 are dead, and communities, particularly in western North Carolina, were hit with devastating floods.
The storm impacted many coffee workers and cafes who need your help. As Daily Coffee News reported, there are currently no relief efforts being led by national trade organizations, but individual shops and companies are pulling together to support staff and help raise funds for affected businesses. Here’s a list of a few places where you can give your financial support:
A note that this list is by no means exhaustive, but the team at Getchusomegear put together a spreadsheet of businesses who were affected by the hurricane and fundraisers shops are running on behalf of those impacted that you can check out here.
Georgia:
Trellis Coffee Bar – Augusta, Georgia
Trellis Coffee Bar is without power and cannot sell drinks or provide hours to baristas. According to an email sent to Fresh Cup, they are working on giving staff hours via other non-coffee-sales tasks. However, those opportunities are limited. Co-founder and CEO Ross McDaniel said in an email the best way to support their team is to donate to Trellis’ Venmo account.
North Carolina:
Old Orchard Creek General Store – Lansing, North Carolina
The Old Orchard Creek General Store in western North Carolina was hit with severe flooding due to Hurricane Helene. From their GoFundMe page: “The outpouring of love and support from our community has been overwhelming, but there is still a long road ahead. Early estimates suggest that reopening will cost more than $250,000. This goal is just a small step toward securing the essential equipment needed to get the store back on its feet.” Donate here.
Summit Coffee – Asheville, North Carolina
You can support the baristas and staff at Summit Coffee’s Asheville location in the River Arts District by purchasing coffee from Summit online. 100% of the proceeds will go to support the store’s staff.
From Summit Coffee’s Instagram page: “While we grieve and process, we also need to act. Please help us continue to support the RAD [River Arts District] baristas as long as we can. When the flooding subsides, there won’t be a cafe to go back to. This week, we’re going to give 100% of proceeds from any and all online coffee orders to a fund for that team. Head to the website, buy a bag or three, buy some for your friends, and we’ll get the orders to you as quickly as we can and send the money to Asheville.”
Arrowhead Coffee – Greensboro, North Carolina
Arrowhead was not affected by the hurricane, but they are a donation hub for items needed in the affected areas and are donating a portion of their sales to affected cafes in the state.
From their Instagram account: “We will be donating a portion of our sales to help those in need in Western NC! Specifically, this week, we will be donating to @orchardcoffee in Waynesville to help provide free coffee and eats to guests and first responders. We will also have a box in the cafe for donation of supplies to be flown into Western NC.”
Rowan Coffee – Asheville, North Carolina
Although Rowan Coffee reported via social media that their cafe did not suffer catastrophic damage, they say it’s unclear when water service will be restored in the area, which means they will not be able to open.
From their Instagram account: “Our roastery is outside of town and was largely undamaged. While nothing here is truly normal, I plan to try to resume roasting operations as an owner-operated production as a way to help support the cafe team while they are out of work. However, I’m still figuring out the logistics of making that happen. The cafe has become a home base and gathering place for staff and friends and I’m planning to try and stay here to maintain it while I can for those who can’t leave or are choosing to stay.”
Pollen Coffee + Flowers – Asheville, North Carolina
From the store’s GoFundMe page: “With roads destroyed and the city without water for weeks, we have no idea what will happen or what the future looks like for our staff. We want to make sure we raise money for lost wages and assist them with damage relief! We appreciate your help during this time”
Orchard Coffee – Waynesville, North Carolina
Orchard Coffee is currently open and providing resources for those in need. From their Instagram account: “If you need something, say something. If we can’t directly provide it for you, there’s a good chance we can probably find someone or know an organization who can help.”
Short Sleeves Coffee – Swannanoa, North Carolina
Short Sleeve is a roastery with plans to open a cafe. From their Instagram: “Like all people and businesses in town; we don’t really know what’s ahead for us. We can’t really speak with clarity on the future of the shop, and we have no real good timelines on when we’ll start roasting again. There are too many more important issues at hand to sort out first. These will need the entire towns attention for now.”
Cooperative Coffee Roasters – Asheville, North Carolina
From the stores GoFundMe: “We cannot operate our café without municipal water, so we are asking you to help us offer support to our barista staff of 8 people. We love our team so much! We are all feeling a lot of pain and grief around the destruction in our city.
Your financial support can help bring ease and security to our vulnerable people while we navigate this unprecedented situation. Thank you for all of your messages, thoughts, and prayers.”
Hex Coffee – Charlotte, North Carolina
Hex Coffee is running a promotion where sales of a specific coffee, Proyecto Cabañas, to help raise funds for coffee folks affected by the hurricane in Asheville. From their website: “Many baristas and coffee workers in the area have found themselves without work due to the closure of cafes and the broader impact on the local economy.
We want to support these dedicated individuals by donating all proceeds from this coffee release to help those displaced by this disaster. Together, we hope to help the people who bring together community and bring joy in our daily cup get back on their feet. Join us in supporting Asheville’s coffee community as they rebuild from this catastrophic event. Proceeds from this coffee will go to directly support the Baristas and Coffee Community of Asheville.”
Counter Culture Coffee – Durham, North Carolina
The North Carolina-based roaster will focus on fundraising for victims of Hurricane Helene through its sustainability fund called BLOOM. From their Instagram account: “We are redirecting our BLOOM sustainability fund to assist wholesale coffee partners in Asheville. These funds will help cover the costs of supporting hourly baristas, providing initial coffee orders, assisting with equipment needs, and rebuilding.”
Additionally, “Throughout October and November, we are doubling our contributions to the BLOOM fund. Two cents per pound of coffee sold will go directly toward helping those affected by the hurricane.” Attendees of the company’s weekly tasting series on October 4 will also be able to donate to “Beloved Asheville, a local nonprofit actively providing direct relief to those impacted by the hurricane.”
