You need to read John Sweeney’s story.
There’s an old tradition in Naples, Italy called ‘Caffè Sospeso’ where someone who is pretty well off would buy a coffee and an extra cup which was suspended for someone less fortunate.
The cafe kept a log of the number of “suspended coffees” that had been bought and gave them out to people who couldn’t afford them; a simple but lovely idea.
We know it’s just a cup of coffee but it’s more than that, it’s the gesture that hits home with people and we love it.
That great tradition was the inspiration for Cork man John Sweeney’s Suspended Coffees Movement, which is now in operation in over 1,800 coffee shops in 20 countries in the world.
John told us how an idea that originated in Fermoy has managed to touch so many people across the globe.
“That’s the part where I hardly got any sleep in the last two years. I’ve worked my butt off to contact as many people and organisations I could to just share the concept.
“I’m lucky enough to have connected with some incredibly kind-hearted people. Even the legend that is George Takai shared my page.
“While the idea was about giving someone a coffee it soon became much more. I created a Facebook page that only shares good heartwarming content and people loved it.”
The project is so important to John because he’s been through tough times throughout this project and knows how much of a difference a small gesture can make.
“We didn’t have a thing, I wasn’t able put food on the table, but I stuck at it because I believed in it and the impact it was having,” he told us.
“My electricity was cut twice in the last year so I’ve been at the bottom I know what it feels like to be down.
“It’s funny because for the last eighteen months I didn’t have a clue what I was doing, it was just a Facebook page that I spent hours working on everyday. But now, for the first time in my life, I’m happy.”
The interest in the Suspended Coffees Movement is growing by the day and John says there’s some exciting things coming in 2015.
“Well, there are two big things happening next March. I’ve been invited to do a TEDx talk in Guernsey and I’ve also been one of only 50 people worldwide selected to take part in an amazing thing called Pioneers for Change.
“I used to never get picked for 15-aside football matches let alone something like this (laughs).
“I’ve become a coach too in the mean time, and I’m launching a social programme coaching and mentoring teens and young adults and teaching entrepreneurial skills to empower people to get back on their feet.
“It’s going to be a stepping stone for people to follow their dreams but I have a massive network of “Dream Makers in place to help them take the next step towards living their dream.”
John has high hopes that 2015 will be the year where the project will go to the next level. We asked him to tell us what he’d like Suspended Coffees to have achieved by this time next year.
“We just want it to continue to change people’s lives, because that’s what its doing now, it really is. To some it’s just a cup of coffee but it’s really a gesture that lets people know that someone cares.
“It’s truly empowering people and for the price of a cup of coffee? It’s great for the cafes too because their customers are their community.
“I’d love to see some more Irish cafes on board, some cafes seem to be afraid of it as it sounds mad but when you see it in action it’s powerful.”
John deserves massive praise for the work he’s put into the project so far and everyone here wishes him all the best in the future.
We’ll be asking cafes around Ireland if they’re part of the Suspended Coffee scheme and we’ll definitely be buying a few extra cups over the next few months.
Find Suspended Coffee on Facebook, follow them on Twitter and you can help support the project by clicking here.
