March 2009 Coffee News

-A Big Velasquez Wedding
-New Payment Options
-An Update on the Green Economy

A Big Velasquez Wedding
The big news from the Velasquez family this month was the wedding of Guillermo's oldest niece at the end of February. There hasn't been a big wedding in the Velasquez family probably since Guillermo's brother Abilio got married back in the late 80's. When we were married in September of 1991 in Brookings, South Dakota, Guillermo (the poor guy) was the only one from his family who was able to attend. So this wedding was a big deal, with over 300 family members and neighbors attending. Both the bride and groom have roots in the small rural community of La Cuesta where Guillermo's mom grew up. So naturally just about everyone had to be invited.

Guillermo considered going, but decided against it since we were just there in January and are planning another trip in June. But he was still pretty sad that weekend knowing he was missing all the festivities. Such is the life of many immigrants living here in the United States and missing the weddings and funerals and other life events of their families far away. Harder still for those undocumented immigrants who left children and spouses behind years ago and are unable to travel back to see them without giving up the modest incomes they work so hard to earn and that their families so desperately depend on. We know we are fortunate indeed to stay as connected as we do. (Oh, and if you are wondering if we have any photos of the wedding -- we're still waiting -- but we'll try to share some through our website if we get some.)

Payment Options
We've had several requests lately from customers who would like to pay their monthly coffee orders through automatic charges to a credit card. We could set this up if there is enough interest. We probably need at least 10 people to make it worth while on our end. Let us know if you are interested in this payment option. (This would also allow us to take credit card payments over the phone too.)

An Update on The Green Economy
After we wrote last month about the economy, we read in an email newsletter from Green America (formerly Coop America) that Green businesses in general are doing better even in these rough economic times. They highlight studies showing that companies devoting  management time to sustainability outperform the market by 2.2%  to 7.7%. And socially responsible companies are able to locate capital easier than their mainstream competitors. To read more of the good news yourself go to http://www.coopamerica.org/cabn/newsletter/gbtrends/200810/index.cfm#2.