Build the BeanZ and Co. Kitchen

Hi, we’re Kim Morrison and Noelle Alix, co-founders of BeanZ + Co, an inclusive coffee café in Avon, CT, employing equal numbers of individuals with and without intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD).

Our BeanZ & Co. journey began almost 25 years ago when we met at a mother’s group for women with babies with Down syndrome. The two of us immediately connected because we had a similar view. We believed in the possibility of our children’s future and what they could do. That initial meeting was the genesis of a 20+ year friendship, one of a shared vision for an inclusive future for all our girls. Kim is mom to Megan and Mollie. Noelle is mom to Caroline, Cate and Claire. Megan and Cate have Down syndrome.

Fast forward 18 years to when Meg and Cate were about to graduate from the transition program they attended. It then became clear that despite the education and training they worked so hard to achieve, there was no world waiting for them. 80% of individuals with IDD are either unemployed or underemployed. We wanted something different for our daughters. And we wanted to change this statistic.

In the summer of 2018, we found ourselves talking about how we could make inclusive

employment a reality. Our goal? To break the next glass ceiling for people with IDD. A

restauranteur and caterer, Kim had a café in her gourmet-to-go shop, The New England Pasta Company, that we decided to reimagine into an inclusive coffee café.

And with that, BeanZ + Co. was born. We built the employment structure on the inclusive one-to-one friendship model of Best Buddies and Unified Sports.

At BeanZ + Co., we employ equal numbers of individuals with and without IDD working side by side. Inclusive employment works! It has transformed the lives of everyone who is a part of BeanZ + Co. from our employees with and without IDD, to our customers, to our community partners.

From the start, our community stepped in to support us. They are why we’re still here after Covid-19, when many restaurants didn’t make it. And they’ve helped us survive all that’s resulted from it, including increases in food costs, in wages, in utilities—in just about everything.

Today, we want to grow our mission. To continue to expand inclusive employment beyond our four walls. But we’ve had a setback. Due to circumstances beyond our control, we are moving.

The good news? It’s just up the road to the former Motophoto building in

Avon Village Marketplace, 11 East Main Street, where we have so many friends!

Once we knew we had to move, we were intentional about where it would be.

First, it had to be a place where we can grow our inclusive employment mission. If we’ve got to move, we’ve got to move forward! And a close second? Staying in Avon, CT. Our community means so much to us!

It’s hard to ask for help, but we’re going to need your help to make this move happen.

No space in the area had a commercial kitchen, so we’re fundraising $75K to build one. We considered closing our doors, but our mission means too much to us and our community. Hearing words like these from a customer motivated us more than we can say, “But you can’t close. BeanZ is changing the way people view our children.”

There is so much more we need to do.

We’re beyond grateful for your donations in any amount. We have donation jars at BeanZ + Co. and also are accepting donations here on our Go Fund Me page.

When we started BeanZ + Co. in December 2018, we had no idea how far we’d come.

Now we can’t help but dream about how far inclusive employment can go.

All thanks to each of you!

P.S. As a thank you, those who donate $50 or more will be entered to win one of 5 gourmet-to-go dinners for 8. Major donors will have their names or logos posted on our website, on the community wall in our new space, and will also be spotlighted on our social media pages.

To learn more about our inclusive employment mission, for catering services, or to discover how you can be an inclusive employer, please visit our website: www.beanzandco.com