Hello Neighbor Blend

HELLO NEIGHBOR BLEND

7.8.22

We're proud to welcome Hello Neighbor Blend! 25% of proceeds benefit Hello Neighbor's mission of refugee resettlement in Allegheny County.

We’re excited to introduce you to Hello Neighbor Blend, releasing in partnership with its namesake – local nonprofit Hello Neighbor. As a federally approved resettlement organization, Hello Neighbor’s mission is to provide refugee resettlement in Allegheny County while continuing to offer post-resettlement support by matching refugee and immigrant families with dedicated neighbors to guide and support them in their new lives.

This year-long collaborative coffee is available NOW through June 2023.

When creating this blend, our roasting team was intentional about selecting coffees from countries on Hello Neighbor’s refugee roster, leading to the inclusion of Guatemalan and Congolese components. Learn more about the three coffees that make up this blend:

Ceiba, Guatemala: This coffee, from a small grower’s collective named after Guatemala’s national tree, provides a chocolatey base for this blend.

El Aguacatal, El Salvador: This coffee contributes a balanced body and malic acidity, often associated with apples.

Mapendo, Democratic Republic of the Congo: This is our first year purchasing from The Mapendo Collective. Their coffee tops off the blend with a wonderful sparkle and finish.

taste notes of: red apple, brown sugar, & chocolate

Want to know how this partnership came to be? We sat down with Hello Neighbor Founder & CEO, Sloane Davidson to talk shop!

Commonplace: Tell us about the mission of Hello Neighbor.

Sloane Davidson: From the beginning, Hello Neighbor has worked to improve the lives of recently resettled refugee and immigrant families by matching them with dedicated neighbors to guide and support them in their new lives. Our flagship mentorship program continues to guide our vision.

CP: Hello Neighbor was recently approved to provide resettlement in Allegheny County – tell us about that process?

SD: The resettlement process in our country all comes from Washington, D.C. and has been formalized since 1980. Pittsburgh is a great city for new neighbors. Currently, Hello Neighbor is one of four resettlement agencies in the region. Since January 2022, we have resettled 206 Afghan individuals, secured 60 permanent housing units, enrolled 63 kids in school, and had over 700 volunteer hours logged. This was all possible only because of the tireless work of the Hello Neighbor staff and the help of volunteers, community partners, and funders. We also look forward to year 2 of resettlement and continuing to grow our support services for new neighbors!

CP: What does it mean to partner with Commonplace Coffee to release this year-long blend?

SD: This year-long partnership is incredible and immeasurably important. Commonplace Coffee has an imprint in our community – reaches so many individuals – which, in turn, means all of those folks will have the chance to not only hear about Hello Neighbor’s mission but contribute to it through their daily brew. Funds from this partnership will be used within all of our programming, with a focus on our family-based programming. We have been very fortunate for partners, like Commonplace Coffee, whose commitment to our mission creates sustainable funding that allows us to dream big.

CP: We have to ask – what’s your favorite coffee beverage?

SD: I am a purist and drink black coffee in the mornings, or sometimes I’ll swap for an Americano. It’s one of the many reasons I love Commonplace Coffee and other locally owned roasters – because the coffee is so good on its own.