Happy MLK Day… though this morning started nothing like I expected.

At 2 AM, my friend blew up my phone and woke me up to tell me he had just driven past our shop and noticed the glass shattered. When I arrived, my heart dropped. Someone had broken into Equal Minded Café.

In moments like this, your mind goes everywhere at once:

“Was someone trying to get out of the cold?”

“Was it the same people who broke in last time?”

“What’s missing? What’s damaged? Is anyone still inside?”

“How am I supposed to pay for this?”

“Why didn’t the alarm go off?”

“Do I need bars on the windows?”

“Do I just start sleeping at the café with my gun?”

All of that ran through my head in seconds.

The person was in and out within 90 seconds. We caught him on multiple cameras, but with a hoodie and a mask, he’s unidentifiable. The break-in happened at 9:33 PM. I had just driven past the building at 8:49 PM and almost went inside to finish some work. If timing had been even slightly different, I could’ve been standing right there.

After letting the facts settle, I reminded myself: it could have been worse. This is part of the reality of being a business owner — you can lose everything overnight, and somehow you still have to wake up and keep going.

A lot of people have told me,

“Equal Minded should be off limits with all the good y’all do.”

But the truth is: no one is off limits. Bad things happen everywhere, to all of us. And because of those bad moments, we learn to truly appreciate the good ones we’re blessed to see if we just keep living.

We’re entering our 8th year in business, and I guess God still has a few more lessons lined up. Thankfully, this time the damage and loss are under $1,500, instead of the thousands we took on from the last break-in — but it still hurts, emotionally and financially.

We’ve created a GoFundMe for anyone in the community who wants to help us recover. Every dollar truly makes a difference, and we are deeply grateful for anything you’re willing to give or share. Your support helps us stay open, stay strong, and stay committed to serving the neighborhood we love.

A Bigger Next Step: Neighborhood Safety

This break-in has made one thing clear: Manheim and South Hyde Park — especially the Troost corridor — need a stronger, united neighborhood watch.

Hyde Park already has great community efforts in place, but Troost is the dividing line… and we’re on the side the city still too often overlooks. We’ve been told in a hundred different ways to police ourselves — so maybe it’s time we organize and actually do it.

I want to work with neighbors on both the East and West sides of Troost to build a joint patrol and safety effort. Not just Manheim. Not just Hyde Park. Both. Together.

Because honestly, it’s long past time the city paid attention to our neighborhood too — not just downtown, not just Crossroads, not just the Plaza, not Westport, not 18th & Vine… and definitely not just the future stadium graveyards.

If you’re willing to help build this neighborhood watch initiative, please reach out. I can’t do this alone — but together, we can protect and uplift the place we call home.

Thank you for reading, sharing, supporting, donating, and standing with us.

— Dontavious

Equal Minded Café | Troost Avenue | Kansas City