Good Works
Coffee is a global effort. It is a privilege to forge relationships and extend our community along the supply chain as much as possible. With your help and patronage, Foglifter Coffee Roasters is able to create an impact, however small, on the lives of colleagues in our area and around the world. We thank you for supporting our passions and those of our partners.
SANTA CLARA SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM
- GUATEMALA -
We were introduced to the prized coffees of this fourth-generation coffee producer through our shop, Bean Around The World - Main & 20th. Inspired by a trip to the Zelaya farms, the Bean Roastery worked with Ricardo to build a schoolhouse at their remote farm, Finca Carrizal, way back in 2007 and have continued to support the growing school program ever since.
As entrepreneurs, they are tireless in the pursuit to do more. From agricultural innovations to eco-friendly, meticulous processing facilities to community advocacy and philanthropy, the care the Zelaya family takes with their life's work is energizing and inspiring.
It was an honour to kick off Foglifter Coffee Roasters with an ongoing commitment to the scholarship program conceived by Ricardo and now spearheaded by his daughters Katia and Bel. By being nimble and adaptive with their support, the program is able to pour fuel on the educational efforts that Finca Santa Clara employees are making for their children - be it public, private, secondary, or post-secondary.
While in Guatemala in the spring of 2018, I was able to chat with Katia who relayed that among the 30 recipients there are four in university, among them one to be an accountant, another an architect. I asked to what degree was the fund transformative for them. "One hundred percent." was Katia's instantaneous response, leaving no doubt that the cost of higher education is indeed prohibitive for the recipients' families.
We thank Katia and Bel for their dedication to the growth of this program. Working alongside their Dad, they are bringing on the fifth generation of Ricardo Zelaya Coffee (as well as playing a prominent role in the rising young female entrepreneurship era in Guatemala) with amazing vision and verve.
Meet Hector!
You have been supporting Hector since he started the program in primary school. He is now starting his High School Specialization.
Hector is starting his High School Specialization program (Diversificado) in 2025 with a focus on tourism.
He is the son of Ricardo Cruz who has long worked in the blacksmithing area, making the machines of the dry mill and working on vehicles or machinery of the farm in need of maintenance. Ricardo has been working at Santa Clara for 17 years and now has six children.
Meet Aurora!
Meet Clara!
Clara is the daughter of Catalina Acajabon, a single mother who has worked at Finca Santa Clara for eighteen years. Catalina works in the coffee field, performing different tasks and carefully selecting and handpicking the ripest coffee cherries. She is part of the group of women that select the “Special Picking Coffee” every year.
Clara started her first year of high school in 2024 and experienced a big change since it was the first year at a different school. Clara won second place in best grades for High School among all the students in the program.
Meet Félix!
REVIEW THE UPDATE FOR THE 2022 SCHOOL YEAR!
OUR 2020 UPDATE ON THE STUDENTS YOU HAVE BEEN SPONSORING:
CATRACHA COFFEE
- SANTA ELENA, HONDURAS -
When we first came across Mayra Orellana-Powell, we knew this would be a match. A meticulously-produced classic Honduras profile with an admirable provenance and a bright, bright future. About ten years ago, enthusiastic, kind, and big-hearted, Mayra returned to her hometown from Royal Coffee’s HQ in Oakland with her community’s potential in her sights.
Catracha Coffee is everything you want in a business relationship - an industry insider and knowledgeable partner who delivers a product that improves at every turn and elevates her colleagues at origin with expertise in the moment as well as with the framework for autonomy and success down the road.
This isn’t Fair Trade coffee, it’s better. Rewarding training, education, and diligence with meaningful premium purchase prices that are multiples higher than your typical FTO and go directly into the hands and homes of its producers, Catracha Coffee is in it for the social good. Review the slideshow for full transparency on what’s in your cup.
We are grateful to have connected with Mayra and gleaned some of her knowledge. We look forward to carrying Catracha coffees each year.
Purchase our release of Dulce Meloso - a Catracha community blend.
Read more about the story of Catracha Coffee and the producers of Dulce Meloso at our Current Offerings page.
See photos from the Catracha community at their website.
Watch “Way Back to Yarasquin” a 2013 documentary about Mayra and Catracha Coffee on Vimeo.
