|
Sunday, March
30, 2008
By Brie
Handgraaf
Times-News
GRAHAM – For
many, coffee is a way to make it through a stressful day, but for
the owners of the Roasted Coffee Depot, 131 West Elm Street,
coffee means so much more.
Jerry Harrison
and Chris Fulford said their coffee shop is a ministry with a
coffee shop front. “The best part of the shop is meeting people
and helping them through rough times,” Harrison said. “It is
amazing. People come in here for coffee, but we listen to a lot
of their problems. We encourage them to trust in God, because
there is nothing He can’t do.”
The pair met
each other playing in a southern gospel group, Full Surrender.
After shows, they would stop at independent coffee shops and
thought it might be cool to own their own shop one day.
It took a year
and a half to actually open the shop, but they said their
friendship has worked to their advantage.
“I don’t know
anybody else I’d want to do this with,” Fulford said. “Just when
he is tired, I kick in. It has been an amazing partnership.”
But it hasn’t
always been easy. “At the beginning we were doing over 100 hours
apiece and it was killer,” Harrison said. “But if I had it to do
all over again…I would. Any business has stress, but it has been
an inside reward to me.”
Harrison and
Fulford begin each day in prayer and customers can place prayer
requests inside a prayer box.
“We’ve prayed
for many people in here,” Harrison said. “We’ve watched the hand
of God change their whole situation.
They recalled
one time when a regular came in and they could tell something was
wrong. He began crying and told the duo what was going on. His
business was failing and he was about to lose his license as an
attorney, but they saw his life change after he opened up.
“We saw a
transformation. His life shifted and things started happening,”
Fulford said. “I guess it was the good mojo we put on him.”
But the duo
said they don’t push religion on anybody. “Some people want to
throw religion on you, but that is not what we believe,” Fulford
said. “We don’t want to be a turn off for anybody.”
The have a
supply of mustard seeds they use to help people. “People come in
here and are stressed to the max, but they share these personal
problems with us,” Fulford said. “The faith of a mustard seed is
that you can move mountains in your life. It is a message of
faith, hope and love.”
Harrison took
a moment to reflect after their one year anniversary on March 12.
“The first year was a killer. We went through lots and lots of
money,” he said. “But if we close now, I know God has used us in
a powerful way to make a difference in many people’s lives.
Both balance
their time at the shop with their home lives. Fulford has two
daughters, Tiffany, 20 and Brittney, 17. Harrison has been
married for 33 years and has two children, Julie, 28 and Chris,
31.
The shop
serves all kinds of coffee drinks, lunch and pastries (some from
Tasty Bakery). They are planning to launch fair trade, organic
coffee from Kenya in May.
|
