At Richwood Coffee, we believe that every cup has the power to create positive change. It’s not just about brewing great coffee; it’s about brewing better communities. That’s why we’re thrilled to share testimonials from some of our incredible beneficiaries. These stories highlight how funds raised through our coffee sales are making a real difference in the lives of those around us.
Friends of Marysville Library (2Q Beneficiary)
We are the Friends of the Marysville Public Library. Our organization supports the library programs.
Every year we donate 4% of our endowment fund to the library to support primarily their summer reading program and their kickoff event. (I have attached a few photos of that event) We are very proud that this year that contribution was $19,368.58.
In addition, we were able to also support the library in purchasing defibrillators and AED training for each of their locations, supported their staff appreciation day, and donated funds to help the levy marketing efforts in all in 2024. Your funds support our ability to do a little more each year, and we are very grateful for the support.
We appreciate the partnership with Richwood Bank, and Richwood Coffee. It is such a nice way for our members to get involved and help raise money while getting something delicious in return. We have had great feedback on this program and appreciate all your work that goes into it each year.
Clark County Fair
From Autumn’s mother Allison:
This was Autumn’s first year to participate in 4-H. She is a member of her family’s club which was started by her great-grandparents over 60 years ago in 1952. She loves attending the meetings with many of her cousins and local friends.
Autumn chose to take a cooking and a sewing project this year. She loved making snacks to share with her family and designed an outfit. She participated in the judging process and style review where she won first place in her category and will get to take her outfit to the state fair!
Autumn has medical issues that prevent her from going to school. 4-H has been an amazing opportunity that has allowed her to connect with her peers and express her creativity in her very own ways!
Union County 4-H
For the past 2 years, Union County 4-H has used their coffee funds to help with Camp Counselor fees for camp. Being a Counselor is hard work…and a life changing leadership experience for most of them! Below they shared, in their own words, how it has impacted them.
Fairbanks
Thank you for providing the funds to purchase shirts for our 9th and 10th grade science students who hosted an eclipse fair for grades K-8. It was a successful event, and it gave our students the opportunity to apply content to the real world.
The Friends of the Plain City Public Library—2Q Beneficiary
The Friends of the Plain City Public Library always seek to help the Plain City Library serve the community in the best ways possible. In recent weeks, the focus has been on the Summer Reading Program and programs for all ages. In addition, the library is under construction, so there will be a variety of equipment and furnishings that will be needed when the addition is complete.
The Summer Reading Program includes prizes for readers who have completed various levels of the reading program. There are also many programs for all ages. For not-yet-readers and beginning readers, there are story times. A very special addition this summer was story time at Richwood! The Plain City branch very graciously hosted story times recently and provided prizes for the children who came! The kids LOVED the Richwood piggy banks and stickers!
Some of the programs this summer were The Spoon Man, Tom’s Mystery and Fun Show, two Solar System programs, a Wildlife Encounter, and Writing Workshops. More programs are upcoming, including Adventures in VR, Dragon Training, meeting a sled dog and musher who participated in the Iditarod, Thurber House Writing Workshops, and an adult murder mystery event. Story times are ongoing, as are other programs such as Ukelele Club, Dance and Sing with Miss Marlene, and the Plain City Writing Group. Another way the Friends were able to help the Library was to provide funds to upgrade the lunch/break area for the library employees. Supporting the local high school by purchasing an ad for the musical program is also a way the Friends seek to encourage Plain City residents.
Since reading is such an important skill for folks of all ages, whatever the Friends of the Plain City Public Library can do to spark interest and provide activities to encourage reading, we will do. The funds from Richwood Coffee will serve to continue the Plain City Library’s longtime efforts as well as to allow the Library to explore and add new programs to encourage literacy for all.
Habit for Humanity of Delaware & Union Counties
When Richwood Coffee sends us coffee funds, we allocate those funds directly to the affordable homes we are building at that time. Richwood Coffee funds helped us complete our first of four affordable homes on Belle Avenue in Delaware this spring, and we are excited to utilize Richwood Coffee funds on the three remaining homes that we will be constructing in the near future. We are grateful for Richwood Coffee’s funding and look forward to our continued partnership building homes, community, and hope in Delaware and Union Counties.
North Union
So many cool things to share how North Union uses their coffee funds! Student of the Month Drinks, NUHS Student Council Leadership Class T-shirts, Senior Banners, and Robotics, Championship T-shirts, 6th grade camp scholarships to name a few.
Memorial Health
The Memorial 2020 project included our new Inpatient Pavilion which opened in October 2020 with 36 rooms, creating a new standard of healthcare for the region. Additionally, the project included 12 shelled inpatient rooms for future expansion. After the initial 36 rooms opened, demand quickly created the need for the 12 shelled rooms to be completed as well, and Memorial leaned into proceeds from Richwood Coffee to help fund it.
This addition has helped keep patients from our community closer to home when they need medical care, decreasing the need for transfers to other facilities. Our private inpatient rooms allow patients to have a better experience with private bathrooms and optimal guest accommodations. Read what the community has said about our Inpatient Pavilion:
- “First of all, both buildings are beautiful inside and out. I feel that patient privacy will improve with all rooms being private and private elevators. No more transferring patients down the main hall.”
- “Having been born at Memorial during it’s infancy, it’s so exciting to see where Memorial is today. I love the new privacy features that have been added, moving the nurses more to the floor for patient and family contact, and the bright, airy design.”
- “The patient rooms were awesome! I’ve spent many nights at a hospital in Columbus and I can definitely say Memorial’s patient rooms are better.”
Delaware County 4-H
Thanks to Richwood Coffee donations, we provided tumblers to 4-H volunteers attending the recognition banquet in January of this year. We also were able to use funds to invite Delaware County Historical Society to present at our Cloverbud Camp. The theme was “Wild West” and they learned what it was like in Delaware when this was considered the wild west!
RTC Services
There’s nothing like that feeling the first time you get in a car by yourself to drive. We rarely remember the destination, but we do remember that feeling of freedom and the joy of the journey. Many of RTC Services (RTC) clients will never get their driver’s license, but with the help of Richwood Coffee they did get to experience the joy of driving at The Hub or what our clients lovingly call Rocky’s.
The morning was filled with anticipation as RTC clients were excited for this opportunity to finally get behind the wheel of a go-kart and drive. Rocky Grimes, owner and operator of The Hub, greeted the group with smiles, handshakes and even hugs for those that wanted them. The excitement was palpable as the group gathered under the tent to get directions for the morning. Rocky’s passion for sharing this experience with the developmentally disabled was evident in everything he did for them. Clients had the opportunity to drive a go- kart as well as take a ride through the woods and hills with Rocky’s daughter, Julia, in the driver’s seat.
Rocky took the time to get to know each driver and make sure their turn driving was everything they wanted, making each experience unique to the client. The smiles, gleeful laughter, and confidence gained that day will never be forgotten by any of us that had the opportunity to witness it.
For days after the event RTC staff heard:
“That was the best day ever!”
“I had the best time!”
“When can we go back?”
Richwood Coffee gave RTC clients the opportunity to live out a dream that seemed impossible at one time. The joy they felt that morning will continue with a lifetime of memories.
The Hub, though, is only one of many experiences that Richwood Bank has supported in the last year. The ADS clients enjoyed a trip to the Elder Theater in Sidney to see WONKA last year at Christmas time. RTC had the entire theater to themselves for a crowd that included 48 people, 10 in wheelchairs. It took 5 vans to get them there. They enjoyed popcorn, sodas and a theater just for them. They laughed and cheered as they enjoyed a theater with staff that took great care of them.
This summer has been amazing with several trips that enhance the lives of RTC clients. The ADS program made a trip to the Neil Armstrong Museum where they enjoyed a glimpse into the world of an astronaut. They saw what the food looked like, the tools they used, and how they slept. The museum houses Neil Armstrong’s Gemini spacesuit which was a favorite place for photos. ADS clients also spent time at several interactive exhibits. Their favorite part of the day was the lunch at the outdoor picnic area which is designed as a futuristic moon base. Several of the clients sat in the Gemini capsule mockup and got a taste of what the astronauts felt like when they traveled to space.
The Community Engagement folks had the opportunity for a unique experience in June as well. You’ve heard of yoga with goats, but did you know that you can also paint with goats? RTC’s Community Engagement program focuses on volunteering, acclimating to social situations, and learning new skills. One of the groups recently spent an afternoon at Tiny Taylor Homestead for a unique opportunity to interact with goats while enjoying a relaxing painting session to inspire their creativity. The clients got to pet and snuggle the goats and paint flowerpots on a beautiful sunny afternoon. Some members even got to bottle feed the baby goats. Now that’s a great way to spend an afternoon relaxing.
Finally, the ADS programs got to take a tour of Ohio Caverns last month. It was the perfect day to tour the caverns and enjoy lunch outside. The entire group was greeted by employees of Ohio Caverns who gave a fabulous tour as well as supporting the group with their unique needs. We are so grateful that Ohio Caverns now has an outdoor entrance for people with wheelchairs so all of the clients could enjoy the beauty and mystique of the caverns.
You can see that each of these trips was special, and what a gift it is that RTC clients have these opportunities because Richwood Coffee is generous in their support. Christy McGill, Program Services Manager said, “I’ve been working with the ADS programs for several years, and I’ve seen a dramatic improvement in the quality of services we’re able to provide since we partnered with Richwood. The funds we’ve received have opened many doors for people to have life experiences and memories that otherwise would not have been possible. I’ve seen an improvement in morale, and the excitement clients get knowing they have more to look forward to. Your generosity is making a difference for the clients and staff every time we go out on a trip.”
This isn’t the end though. RTC is looking forward to some more trips this summer with Richwood donations including another trip to the Neil Armstrong Museum, Cedar Bog, and a trip to Young’s Dairy, where they can make even more memories because of your generosity.
St. Martin de Porres Outreach
We used our entire proceeds to help families devastated by the tornado at Indian Lake earlier this Spring. Our St. Martin de Porres Outreach Mission Center provides furniture and household goods to poor and needy families throughout Union, Madison and surrounding counties.
The people were so grateful…the funds were used to help with deductibles on insurance claims and to provide other emergency needs, including food. We also took along 250 pieces of chicken for a local restaurant to barbecue to feed volunteers who worked tirelessly to help with cleanup efforts! One man said, when I explained that the check we delivered was possible due to the Richwood Bank Coffee Program, shouted “now THAT’S my kind of bank!” It was heartwarming!