A Cup of Hope will be a coffee shop cafe in a Southern New Jersey location that will employ disabled adults.
Project Description
Only 17.5 percent of people with disabilities are employed in competitive employment according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
According to Social Security, 56 million Americans, or 1-in-5, live with disabilities.
As professionals and parents in the field of disabilities both Heather and Jackie have sat in years of meetings that seemed to end with a feeling of little to no hope.
Many disabled children and adults want to work and “live a normal adult life”.
Our society is slowly and in a pain staking manner incorporating disabled adults into employment. Many states are becoming “work first” which means that work should be looked at as the first option for a disabled adult. But, the jobs are, at times, very hard to come by.
As a nonprofit - A Cup of Hope is seeking $35,000 seed money from multiple funding sources to open. The store front will initially be a rental. We will open as a small coffee shop / cafe-bakery. A Cup of Hope is a coffee shop and bakery cafe that will employ people with disabilities. In fact – 90% of all employees will have some form of a disability. What will start as one store has the potential to spread in so many ways.
The niche employment concept is not new. Project SEARCH, Greystone Bakery, Bitty & Beau’s and so many more. The movement of Hope is spreading quickly and I am asking you to be a part of something huge. Hope for inclusion and integration for all. Hope for acceptance and a meaningful life for all.
Updates
The Project FAQs
I don’t live anywhere near New Jersey - why would I invest in this?
I COMPLETELY understand this question. While this first Cup of Hope Cafe will be in New Jersey this is just the start! Literally every part of the United States has a disabled population and could benefit from organizations such as this.
Taking disabilities out of typical day programs setting and into a public setting benefits both the disabled adults and society as a whole. The more we recognize as a society that disability does not equal inability the more normalization and integration can occur.
The business concept and training opportunities are universal and can (and hopefully will!) be applied all over the country going forward as more and more states opt for and enforce work first programs.
What will the $35,000 be used for?
The money is start up money to fund the first 6-months of start up. The money will cover rent, insurance, electric / utilities being turned on, basic renovations, necessary equipment and supplies and HIRING of our first round of employees to OPEN as a fully functioning cafe in a walking town with a ton of potential customers. This is where the magic starts.
Then what happens?
Any successful business either nonprofit or for profit has to support itself. A Cup of Hope will be self sustaining through the Cafe portion. However, after the initial start up there will be other ways for funds to come in to sustain and expand the mission:
A Cup of Hope will network ferociously with other small businesses to carry their products in addition to our products. (the amazing bagels, home-made chocolates, home-made ice cream etc.) There is 2-reasons for this.
- All of these products are in different towns throughout Southern New Jersey. Buying wholesale and selling in one place (our cafe) will draw more customers to our shop and offer variety for our employees to sell and customers to buy.
- By working with these multiple small businesses we will be sharing our mission every time. Small business owners who may have never considered hiring an employee with a disability will start to see these workers in a new way. Leading to more jobs for the employees everywhere.
FUTURE planning: To network with other nonprofits and state entities.
A branded Cup of Hope Coffee Cup (as seen in our video!!!)
A branded Cup of Hope T-Shirt.
A surprise sure to delite.
Rewards
A branded Cup of Hope Coffee Cup (as seen in our video!!!)
A branded Cup of Hope T-Shirt.
A surprise sure to delite.