Green Bean Coffee House

The Green Bean is Back!

2009-11-09T16:12:00.001-08:00

It is with much delight that we announce the Re-Opening of the Green Bean this Saturday, November 14^th at 8am in the Greenwood Sip & Ship located at 8560 Greenwood Ave. N. The Sip & Ship will be our temporary location thanks to the AMAZING generosity of the owners, Steven and Diana Naramore, who have offered to let us share their space and use their espresso equipment while we explore our longer term options.

Here are the details for this Saturday:

Grand Re-Opening and Green Bean ‘Mugging’

When: Saturday, November 14^th

Time: 8am-5pm

Location: Greenwood Sip & Ship, 8560 Greenwood Ave N

What’s a Green Bean Mugging you ask? This is your chance to share a bit of yourself and to help us get back on our feet. On Saturday, bring in a mug from home, have a cup of coffee and then leave it in the dish bin as you go to help us rebuild our collection of quirky, lovely mugs!

Come thirsty, and come hungry! Baker Bob is buying a new oven tomorrow so we hope to have the coffee you’ve come to expect and the cookies and quiche you just can’t say no to! Yeah!

Story Time Lives On! (Tuesdays, 10am @ the Sip & Ship

2009-11-05T12:16:00.001-08:00

Come join us for Story Time as usual, Tuesdays at 10am! You’ll find our faithful volunteer Jane ready to read stories to your kids

Thanks!

Summer

Opportunities to Help

2009-11-05T12:12:00.001-08:00

First of all, stay vigilant friends and stay hopeful in the light of the news today of 2 more fires in our neighborhood! Steve Giliberto with the Greenwood/Phinney Chamber of Commerce is working to set up a community meeting with representatives from the Police Department.

The Green Bean has a brand new Americorp volunteer, Dan Moses, who started working just about the time of the fire. If you are looking for ways to help email Dan. He’s consolidating a list of helpers so that as needs crystallize we can call on you!

And here are a few initiatives taking place in the community already:

The Community Dinners put on by Westminster Community Church and hosted at Upper Crust Catering is taking an offering tonight, Thursday, November 5^th for the Fire Relief Fund.

Neptune Coffee is considering charging a cover for some of their Trivia Nights and charging a cover which will go to the Greenwood Fire Relief Fund…I don’t see mention of it on their website yet but stay tuned…

Wing Dome gave a portion of their proceeds from beer and burger sales on Sunday, Nov 1 to the Greenwood Fire Relief Fund….thanks Wing Dome!

One of the Greenwood Community Groups from Mars Hill Church in Ballard is working on putting together a holiday benefit auction sometime prior to the holidays with donations from local businesses and neighbors. If you are interested in donating items or services please contact Brock Prince.

$10,000 reward in Greenwood arson

2009-11-04T11:10:00.001-08:00

From http://blog.seattlepi.com/seattle911/archives/184071.asp

The NW Insurance Council and Arson Alarm Foundation announced Wednesday a $10,000 reward for information that helps to solve the Oct. 23 arson at four Greenwood restaurants.

The fire, which investigators later determined to be intentionally set, caused $2 million in damage to the Green Bean Coffee House, Szechuan Bistro, C.C. Teriyaki and Pho Tic Tac restaurants.

Anyone with information about this arson is encouraged to call the Arson Hotline (800-55-ARSON) or local authorities. Callers may remain anonymous and could be eligible for an award.

Harvest Fest a Blast!

2009-10-31T20:38:00.001-07:00

Thanks to a ton of volunteers this year’s 5^th annual Harvest Fest was the best yet! We were able to salvage the games we built last year out of the Bean basement and with about a gallon of dish soap were able to clean the greasy, soot off of them. In addition many of you donated additional games and so the hundreds of kids that came through today were met with a veritable wonderland of games, oodles of candy and endless smiles! Thanks for all of you who stopped by just to say hi too! It was so great to see you all there.

Fund Growing

2009-10-31T00:15:00.001-07:00

Just a quick update to let you know that as of close of business today the Greenwood Fire Relief Fund has $1436 in it to go towards assisting the businesses affected by the recent fire. Thanks for your generosity!

And just a couple other things

1) If you want to help out in any way with cleanup, recovery, or moving forward at the Bean or with the other businesses there are a couple ways you can let people know: either email help@greenbeancoffee.org or stop in at the Neighborhood Service Center and sign the list Beth Pflug has begun!

2) Harvest Fest will happen rain or shine! If you don’t see folks between the Romios and McDonalds head to Upper Crust above Sweet On You on the corner of 85^th and Greenwood. The entrance is on 85^th next to the bus stop.

Find Us On Facebook

2009-10-29T23:27:00.001-07:00

Folks, the Green Bean is on Facebook. We’d love to begin using this Facebook page as a scrapbook of sorts. Leave us a message, write a note about what the Bean was/is to you, upload pictures. Please visit us at Green Bean Facebook. We look forward to seeing you there!

Glimmers of Hope

2009-10-29T22:54:00.001-07:00

Today the fire department released word that they have reason to suspect the case of last Friday’s fire was arson. We can choose bitterness and anger…or we can choose to forgive. We’re going to try every day to forgive. Please join with us in remaining positive in light of this news.

Tonight’s gathering at Romios was beautiful. We packed the conference room with members of Greenwood to remember, and to begin looking to the future. ‘Loan’, the owner of Pho Tic Tac joined us and invited all of us to visit them at their new restaurant at 145^th and Aurora.

What’s Next? We don’t exactly know but we think there’s a very good chance the Bean will be back. We’re exploring future location options now.

How Can You Help? Please send an email to help@greenbeancoffee.org if you would like to help in ANY way and we will be in touch as needs arise.

Glimmers of Hope

BOTH of our hand carved Green Bean signs came through the fire virtually unscathed. The one from the front has a small amount of blistered paint and charring but both are remarkably intact! Can’t wait to see them hanging again soon!

The Greenwood Wing Dome is donating a portion of their proceeds on Sunday, Nov 1 to the Greenwood Relief Fund…Go order Mac & Jacks beer ($2 will go towards the Fund) or Firehouse Burgers ($4 towards the fund) and help the businesses affected!

We were able to dig out our carnival games from the Green Bean Basement today and have volunteers scrubbing them down tomorrow in preparation for Harvest Fest on Saturday, 12-3 between the Romios and old McDonalds…this year’s Harvest Fest will be the best ever despite the fire!

Talks have started about creating a mural on the boarded up windows and doorways of the burned businesses as a sign that life and community live on!

Neil Brown, our dear coffee roaster is beginning to sell a special, one of a kind roast called Burnt Bean Blend in honor of the Green Bean. 75% of the proceeds from these sales will go to the Fire Relief Fund. You can find him at www.brownscoffee.com

Several individuals are already planning benefit concerts to raise money for the relief fund

Businesses are putting out tip jars for the fund

THANK YOU!

2009-10-25T17:23:00.000-07:00

Friends, we can not even begin to put into words how you have smothered us in love over the last 48 hours! Emails, phone calls, text messages, comments on blogs, conversations on the street corner…you have literally engulfed us with love, encouragement and HOPE. Hope…that’s right HOPE, is the prevailing feeling today, even just 2 days after the fire that destroyed the Bean and neighboring 3 restaurants…isn’t that amazing! But here’s the thing, the Green Bean is so much more than the bricks and mortar of the building. It’s so much more than the quirky chandeliers, the chipped coffee mugs we served you your lattes in. It’s even more than the smiling faces of the baristas who met you each day with a smile. The Green Bean is more than all that…the heart of the Bean is community, it’s 1000 relationships formed over the years between us and you, and between one customer and another in the minutes and hours that you set up shop in our store. And these things can’t burn…they DIDN’T burn. In fact, they were alive and well on the street in front of the Bean even as we watched the fire burn shoulder to shoulder with friends like you. Love and community were THRIVING at the Neptune that morning as Dan gave us all a space to get out of the rain and cry together. Love and community were alive and well on the street corners as Jim Lustig from Upper Crust Catering and Verlin from Westminster Community Church gave hugs of support.

I haven’t cried a ton since the fire…but what moves me to tears are the moments when I realize that what we’ve worked to create at the Bean all these years is now being embodied and lived out by you all, all over Greenwood. THANK YOU for caring for us. And thank you for caring for each other. There are MANY businesses that have been just devastated by the events of Friday morning. Please keep the owners and employees of Pho Tic Tac, Szechuan Bistro and CC Teriyaki in your thoughts and prayers as they face the new realities of today. But also hug Stephen from the Hair Academy, Pam and Scott from Taproot, Shakir who operates an import clothing business from the underside of Romios and Amir at Romios as they do the hard work of cleaning up the mess that thousands and thousands of gallons of soot filled water have done to their businesses! We all have a lot of work ahead of us!

One way you can help us now is to let us know how to get ahold of you. We’re heartbroken at the thought of not getting to see you on your trips in to the Bean and we’d really like to be able to add you to our list of contacts so we can keep you posted via email on our plans…So, if you’d like to be added to our email list please scroll down and go to our ABOUT US page. At the top is a link to our EMAIL LIST.

We’ll keep you posted as we move ahead. No plans yet…

Summer and the rest of the Green Bean Staff.

A time to gather and grieve

2009-10-23T14:46:00.000-07:00

Please join us Friday evening (Oct 23) at 7pm at Sanctuary Church's Offices above the Chase Bank on 85th and Greenwood (find the door at the south east corner of the building and come up the stairs, first door on the left). We will have a time to gather, share stories and grieve the results of the fire. All are welcome!

For friends that want to support the Green Bean and help us dream how to move the Bean forward from here, we will meet at 8pm on Thursday (Oct 29) at Romios on Greenwood just north of 85th.

Donations and Support

2009-10-23T12:50:00.000-07:00

Sanctuary Church has established a "Greenwood Fire Relief Fund" at the Chase Bank in Greenwood for donations to support the Greenwood businesses that were damaged and destroyed in Friday's fire.

Donations directly for the Green Bean are also being accepted via Paypal.

Green Bean Coffee House burns down

2009-10-23T11:52:00.000-07:00

News Release/Statement
Re: Green Bean Coffee House burns down
10/23/2009
For immediate release
We announce with great sadness that this morning, Friday October 23, 2009 a fire consumed the Eleanor Roosevelt Building on 85th Street in the Greenwood Neighborhood of Seattle. The fire destroyed four businesses, including The Green Bean Coffee House. Taproot Theatre was also damaged to a lesser degree.
We are grateful that no one was hurt in the fire. The damage is extensive and it appears that the Green Bean is a total loss.
The Green Bean is a non-profit organization owned and operated by Sanctuary Church. Sanctuary meets in the Greenwood area at Taproot Theatre on Sunday mornings at 10am. Much of the church’s equipment appears to have also been lost in the fire.
Dr. Randy Rowland, CEO of the Green Bean Coffee House and pastor of Sanctuary Church, responded to this morning’s catastrophe: “A church and a community development organization are about people, not about buildings. The people are unharmed and we remain resolute in our vision and mission in Greenwood.” Asked how they would function without the building, Rowland said, “We are here to love God and love our neighbors as ourselves. None of that will change. We will carry on beginning today.”
Sanctuary Church will meet on Sunday mornings at 10am at The Upper Crust banquet facility located on the Southeast corner of 85th and Greenwood. Donations to rebuilding the Green Bean may be made to Sanctuary Green Bean Fund. In addition, a fund is being established at the Chase Bank Greenwood Branch to benefit the businesses affected by the fire.
Our websites will be updated regularly with relevant information.
www.sanctuarycrc.org
www.greenbeancoffee.org
Press contact: Mark Mohrlang – mmohrlang@sanctuarycrc.org / 206-919-4053

Fire news

2009-10-23T11:18:00.000-07:00

Friends, it is with much sadness that I write to let you know that early this morning the Green Bean Coffeehouse and the three other restaurants next to it burned down. Noone was hurt but the building seems to be a complete loss. We are sad for the... loss of this beautiful space but we want you to know that the heart of the Green Bean is not what was in the space, it wasn't the chairs and the tables...the heart of the Green Bean is YOU, our customers and our friends...the heart of the Bean is the community that has formed and thrived around it for the past 4 years. And that lives on! We are adding a blog to our Green Bean website and will be updating it as we figure things out.
Love,
from Summer and all the other Bean staff