A locally owned small business is partnering with an agency at the United Way of the CSRA (UWCSRA) to support veterans one cup of coffee at a time.
Commander Coffee has created a bag of a custom blend coffee, with 20% of sales going to Mission United for the next several months.
“I actually invited the staff from the United Way to come down here and do a tasting,” Commander Coffee owner Randy Bradum explained for ABD. “I curated a couple of blends that I thought would be good fits and gave them three options. Then I had their staff do a tasting. They chose between the three different and ultimately voted on the blend that they chose for this.”
The custom blend is a medium-to-dark roast with notes of brown sugar, peanut butter, and chocolate, which are the natural flavors produced by coffee beans as they are roasted.
Mission United is a program at UWCSRA to connect active duty military, veterans, and their families with the services they need.
“The United Way, as a community-based organization, is here for wraparound services, but the veteran population is real heavy here. So, Mission United is here to address that specific demographic,” said Hugh Granville, Mission United program coordinator. “What we do is provide wraparound services, be the connective tissue if we can, to help people navigate any of the things that veterans or their families may need or need help with.”
Bradum is a retired officer of the U.S. Navy. When he returned home, he purchased Ubora Coffee and rebranded it to Commander Coffee, a nod to his military service.
Granville said the partnership developed organically through mutual connections.
“Once we started talking, figured out that he was a veteran, and our section is for veterans, so it just made sense for us to get together,” he said. “Some of the programs that we started up last year for small businesses were in line with what he was trying to do and grow. So that just grew into doing something for giving back to the community.”
Funds raised through the coffee sales will help Mission United grow its services within UWCSRA.
“We’re also going to use it towards getting funds for services that people need,” added Granville. “We’ve always got people who need rent assistance, they need utility assistance, they need everything from top to bottom. So, we’re just trying to deepen that well that we can pull from to give support to the veterans.”
Bradum said his time in the Navy drew him to the collaboration to support an organization serving Augusta’s military community.
“This is what I feel called to do. That’s just plain and simple. Giving back has always been part of anything I do, regardless of what it is, where it is,” said Bradum. “And so, this has just been something that’s been my high priority for me since the beginning. I’m just grateful that I’m now able to actually execute.”
Commander Coffee is at 1128 Jones Street. Learn more at: https://commandercoffee.com/
Information about Mission United is at: https://www.uwcsra.org/missionunited
Both websites have a link to purchase a bag of the custom blend coffee.
