Mornington Commonfolk Coffee Company helps raise money for Ugandan village

A MORNINGTON coffee house is hoping to change the lives of the people in one Ugandan village, one coffee cup at a time.

Sam Keck runs the Commonfolk Coffee Company, which is donating $15,000 to support a small

A MORNINGTON coffee house is hoping to change the lives of the people in one Ugandan village, one coffee cup at a time.

The Commonfolk Coffee Company, which runs a cafe and roasting house, is fundraising to assist the people of Mt Elgon, on the border of Kenya, to establish their own coffee-growing enterprise.

Sam Keck, Commonfolk founder and chief executive, last week launched a campaign to raise $15,000 to buy land, seedlings and coffee processing equipment as well as build a farmhouse.

Commonfolk, which is in Progress St, will donate 20 cents from every cup of coffee sold during the coming year while also running fundraising events.

Mr Keck said the project was an opportunity for many in Mt Elgon, in prime coffee-growing countryside, to break the cycle of poverty. The first beans are expected to be ready for processing in two years.

“For them it’s the chance to change their entire community,” Mr Keck said.

“When the farm and plant become operational, not only will the community have hundreds of new jobs, but some of the poorest people will have a chance to break the cycle of poverty.”

Mr Keck and his associates will visit Uganda later this year to check on progress of the project, which is being set up thanks to connections within the New Peninsula Church, which has a mission in Uganda.