“200 Cup Challenge” Launched; Employs Foster Care Grads 

Irvine, Calif. - It’s said that coffee is the lifeblood of business and Orange County is no exception. But a local organization wants OC Businesses to make their coffee count for more than a quick caffeine buzz. Just launched, the Cause Kups division of Doing Good Works, LLC, is setting out to permanently change the lives of kids aging out of foster care by helping them to become fully independent and self-sustaining individuals – through coffee.

And leading the charge is one from our own ranks, Chris Jacobson, son of Gutenberg Festival founder, David Jacobson, and former producer of the Gutenberg and PrintFest shows.  After making the painful decision to cancel PrintFest during the economic downturn at the end of 2008, Chris became a business development consultant, moving from engagement to engagement but never really finding his niche.

His epiphany came just last August when, as he states, “I wasn’t at all interested in coffee or helping foster care youth.  I was working hard at each engagement, asking God to come alongside and bless my efforts, when I realized I had it all backwards.  I stopped at that moment and prayed for Him to reveal where HE was working and where He wanted me to plug into that work to utilize the talents, experience, and relationships He has blessed me with over the years.  Within two days I was recruited to work with a local coffee company that was helping foster youth.”

In their “200 Cup Challenge” campaign, which launched last week, Doing Good Works is asking 2,000 businesses in Orange County (CA) to commit to buying at least 200 cups of Cause Kups coffee per month. Cause Kups Coffee is available in bags, whole bean or ground, or in single serving cups that work in all Keurig machines.  Companies interested in participating should visit http://200cups.com for more information.

The simple act of switching coffee providers will generate a pool of $26,000 every month, from which Doing Good Works will directly employ foster care graduates.  Not only will these foster care grads be employed and paid a living wage, but they will also receive assistance to solve their transportation issues in getting to and from work.

Statistics show that nearly 50 percent of these young men and women tragically end up on the streets. Jacobson says Doing Good Works aims to prevent this from happening “by addressing the root cause of the problem instead of putting bandages on the symptoms.”

“There are plenty of non-profits that are doing a wonderful job of providing job-skills and life-skills training, plus one-on-one mentoring to help the kids along,” says DGW Head Dot Connector, Scott Henderson. “But where they all seem to fall down is in getting these young adults employed, paying them a living wage, and assisting them with transportation issues to get them to and from work.  This is where we come in, bridging that final gap to independence and self-sustainability.” 

As the campaign rolls out across social media, business owners and managers will be asked to record and post a short video stating that they have just committed to purchasing Cause Kups coffee, and challenge by name three other individuals who are decision-makers at their respective companies to accept the challenge and sign up within 48 hours of being challenged.

Once successful in Orange County, Henderson and Jacobson intend to duplicate the program in other counties across the country.

Says Jacobson, “When I get up each morning now, I have a sense of purpose and clear direction.  I know we’re changing lives, one at a time, permanently helping these individuals out of a dependent, depressing, and often self-destructive lifestyle.”