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Suspended Coffee for those less fortunate
Bounce Coffee co-owner, Dan Stewart, and staff member Julia Pearson with Kalkadoon woman Kim Dyball and Ugarapul woman Priscilla Holborn. Image: Rhonda Hagan
by Rhonda Hagan
T
he homeless and disadvantaged population from Toowoomba in southern Queensland will benefit from the suspended coffee movement that has taken off throughout the world. Queensland coffee shops appear to be adopting Suspended Coffee, a a pay it forward scheme that allows people to prepay for coffee and food for those who need it most. Toowoomba local and Kalkadoon woman, Kim Dyball, said she thought Toowoomba should start helping out charities after the Suspended Coffee link was circulated on Facebook, so she took
it to her local coffee outlet, Bounce. “I thought that we need to have that happening here in Toowoomba, especially with winter coming on,” Ms Dyball said. “It’s freezing cold here, and how good would it be that if we could just help someone, and it might just brighten up their day. “You don’t know what it could lead to, or what changes it could make,” she said. Bounce took up the challenge. Co-owner of Bounce, Dan Stewart said it began in Italy and social media caused it to explode. “I think we’re one of the first places in Queensland that caught wind of it and got it firing up a
couple of weeks ago,” Mr Stewart said. Mr Stewart said the response has been fantastic, and the benefits will be revealed soon. Unlike other Suspended Coffee movements, Bounce will not have tokens displayed, but would instead target all donations to established charities within the Toowoomba region. “Week by week we will be choosing different charities, organisations and associations to be offering the suspended coffees, so we will be sending a bundled package to them to be redeemed at any time for coffee, tea, hot chocolate, muffins or any food or
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drink.” Bounce is well known for it’s charity work, and was established about 12 months ago as a social enterprise cafe, and they were recognised when they won the Inaugural Business Ability Awards in 2012 as proof. “Bounce is nearly one year old. It’s Toowoomba’s first social enterprise cafe, which is a business with a social outcome, so we are more oriented towards having an outcome for society and for the community as opposed to a financial return,” Mr Stewart said.
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“We offer opportunities so we are partnered with Personnel West and Toowoomba Clubhouse, two disability employment agencies that are targeted at people re-entering the workforce the opportunity to get some employment experience.” Bounce is owned by Mr Stewart, his brother Jake and David Burrett. Ms Dyball said she chose Bounce because they are helping other people with training opportunities that could lead on to further employment. “People walk past here and stop. They have a high visibility and
we knew that with their social enterprise aspect they would be perfect to pick up something like this [suspended coffee].” Toowoomba local and Ugarapul woman Priscilla Holborn also supports the Suspended Coffee movement in Toowoomba. “It’s a great opportunity to support homelessness as well as the business overall in terms of the social enterprise. It’s wonderful to see the community taking it on board.”