Rob Bryceson, Lead Pastor, The Gathering House
For almost six years The Gathering House Church location also served weekly as a job training coffee shop and restaurant. Workers came from difficult backgrounds to receive a restart in life, gain skills, and build a resume. Union Gospel Mission, The Dream Center, Salvation Army, and other organizations sent former addicts or homeless clients in for interviews. Agencies working with disadvantaged youth and the Department of Corrections, placed clients in the Street Wise Café. The FBI hand-placed sex-trafficked girls into the care of Tonia Bryceson who managed the Street Wise Café at the church location.
Although the ministry was great, the economics of the operation were troublesome. Trying to operate a non-profit charity endeavor, that for all practical purposes was a fully functioning business model, was proving more difficult each year.
In 2019 the church had raised $50,000 and contracted to replace the leaky roof. The Church was told by the insurance company the replacement wasn’t covered because it was pre-existing. As the work began, a freak thunderstorm hit, causing massive flooding in the building. The entire flooring and subfloor would need to be replaced. It would take months to get back to normal at an additional $30,000 cost.
Tonia and the church leadership discussed what this would mean going forward. They evaluated the costs for the loss of goods, laying off the remaining staff, the stress of carrying the load of life coaching troubled individuals, and the constant struggle to raise additional funding to keep the coffee shop afloat, as well as the implication to raise future costs of restarting the business. It was decided to close the coffee shop/café permanently.
Church services were crammed into the back children’s ministry space. During the week, members dismantled the main sanctuary, disassembling the stage and barista bar, and tearing out the old flooring. Local business leaders and residents joined in. Coffee shop patrons chipped in their labor. One café’ customer was the wife of a local reserve unit navy captain. When she saw on Facebook what was being done, she called her husband, and he brought the entire unit down for a day to help. Just after the floor was installed, the insurance company sent a $60,000 check to cover the claim.
In October 2019, church leaders opened negotiations with different café and coffee shop owners to see about creating a workable sublease. None proved a fit since the church planned on staying the primary owner/operator of the space. After several failed attempts, the church opted to lay low, pray, and wait.
In January 2020, the pastor was diagnosed with cancer and announced he would need to take a medical leave of absence that spring. In March, Covid shut the world down. The building would lay quiet for a year, except for reduced attendance at services on Sundays.
In December the pastor was visiting one of his favorite area coffee shops and roasting companies. The one which had been the main supplier and trainer for the Street Wise Café. For six years, the pastor had known that Chris and Angela Pitotti, who worked for this coffee roaster, were planning on buying the business when the older owner retired. That snowy morning, he discovered that at the last moment, they couldn’t agree on a deal. The Pitotti family decided God wanted them to create their own roasting company.
“I know of a vacant coffee shop that’s looking for a good operator to take over”. The pastor said. “I got connections. I bet I could I swing you a deal.”
February of 2021, the Pitotti Coffee Roasting Co opened in the Gathering House Church Building. The neighborhood is returning. Events are getting booked, a Farmer’s Market has opened in the church parking lot in conjunction with the Coffee Shop.
Looks like God had a plan all along.
Visit The Gathering House Website for more information
Visit the Pitotti Coffee Website for more information about the coffee shop