Moringa Tree Relocation Fund
Attention friends and family members of the Moringa Tree! We are in need of your help to keep our business going! Over 4 years ago, my husband, Andy and I risked everything we had to open up the café with the mission of making the community healthier. Our mission goes far beyond just having a cute place to grab a bite to eat...we are in the business of saving lives! We strive everyday to educate and reach as many people as possible on the necessities of living a healthy lifestyle and how to achieve this through nutrition and everyday living. As many of you know, our business is located right in the middle of the new development that will be using our property as a parking lot for the Elkhart fitness and aquatics center. Our cute and cozy café will be demolished and we are faced with the option to relocate or close the doors for good.
We opened this business with the intentions of being the beginning of a major change - the small voice in a big sea, trying to make a giant impact on our community for the better! We knew this meant we would be going against the grain and pouring our sweat and tears into making this happen, regardless of how long it would take us to get there. In the four years of being opened, we have witnessed the community change - one person at a time. Many lives have been impacted by us and we have been so blessed to establish such amazing relationships with our customers, many of which are like family now. We have watched people improve their health from blood sugar and cholesterol levels improving, energy returning to many, digestive issues being resolved and even mothers that have struggled to get pregnant and are successfully having beautiful babies now...you name it! It is no secret that changing our lifestyles and nutrition can improve not only our health, but our quality of life, and this is exactly what we are fighting for in our community and beyond!
We are not giving up on this dream, as we are in it for the long-run. I knew it would be a struggle opening this business at the time that we did, and many said "you're crazy for being in Elkhart!" but I didn't care. I knew God was calling me to do this and to help the people in Elkhart FIRST, where it was needed the most. Financially, it didn't make sense because natural health and holistic services are not in high demand in our area. However, I felt in my heart this is where I needed to be to begin. We have done a good job at sustaining our business throughout the years, but it is not a money-making one by any means. Our goal was to help as many people as possible by bringing healthy choices at an affordable price, and providing more of a ministry than anything. We know that if we continue serving people with the good intentions of truly loving and caring for our customers, we will continue to grow and stay in business for a long time.
Unfortunately for us, we are on a deadline to leave our current building and start over at our new downtown location. The expenses are extremely high, and renovating the new location is very labor-intensive. The costs of getting the new building up to code are beyond what we can afford, as there are many repairs needed. The choices for relocation were limited for food service, as we wanted to stay downtown where we have established a client base and the old buildings are in need of much work. One of the major projects is to replace the HVAC units which is going to cost upwards of $14,000! The kitchen needs new plumbing and refridgeration in order to operate up to code, and some other expenses are signage, painting, and basic fixer-uppers here and there. Needless to say, the expenses are far beyond what a small business like us can handle, and we could never had prepared ourselves for something like this to happen.
We are asking for your help to make this happen and to keep our mission alive of strengthening our community. Now is the time to be a part of this movement - help us reach our goal so we can continue growing together and changing lives for the better!
