Help South LA Cafe Stay Open!
Donation protected
This GoFundMe page has been updated due to the COVID-19 Crisis. As a result our revenue has dropped 80% and we’ve been forced to furlough most of our staff. We need your help to stay open so we can continue to serve the community and be a resource to those most at risk! Please donate what you can!
PRE-COVID19

WHAT IS OUR GOAL?
Help us a bring a family-owned, coffee shop to South Central Los Angeles! South LA Cafe is not a big corporation like Starbuck's, we're a local, mom and pop coffee shop, created by the people, for the people, who actually live in the community. a sweet spot that we can hold onto and always feel like we belong. A space that is OURS in the middle of mounting corporate development and gentrification. In addition to coffee, it will provide healthy grab and go food options and community arts, culture, and social justice programming. Our tagline is, "Building Community, through Coffee, Culture, and Connection."
WHAT IS OUR COMMITMENT?
1) WE WILL PROVIDE HEALTHY & AFFORDABLE OPTIONS: We are committed to bringing to our South LA community the same quality food and drinks found in other neighborhoods, but with pricing that is affordable.
2) WE WILL BE A SOUTH CENTRAL LA CULTURAL HUB: We are committed to playing our part in keeping alive the vibrant culture and history of South Central Los Angeles. In addition to coffee, we will provide community arts, culture, music, and social justice programming.
3) WE WILL SUPPORT THE COMMUNITY: We are committed to becoming a central hub in the community where everyone will know your name, and where you will feel a sense of belonging. The SLAC will become a special spot in the neighborhood where everyone is welcome!
WHY DO WE NEED $30,000?
Your donation will be applied to Phase One of our Six Phase Plan. Contributions will be applied to permit fees, architect fees, and construction fees. We have a long-term $1,000,000 fundraising goal which will be rolled out in six phases over a 3-year period. We want to create a beautiful space as well as community programming to allow for art, cultural, educational, and social justice programming. We are not just a coffee shop like Starbuck's but an actual multi-purpose community space. Imagine the good we can do in our community with $1,000,000 donated by people around the world who believe in this vision? Imagine the generosity of programming and resources we can provide our underserved and ignored community members. The impact will be HUGE! We are BIG thinkers and we will literally change our community with this fundraiser! $1,000,000 is just a fraction of the money we need to be invested in our people. This $1,000,000 will be raised in 6 phases of which Phase 1 is $30,000 to begin construction next month!
WHO ARE WE & WHAT IS OUR MISSION?
We're the Ward-Wallace Family. We've lived in South LA for most of our lives and are deeply rooted in the community. In a response to the epidemic of rampant gentrification in our South Central community and the desire to help be a part of the movement to keep the history, culture, and community intact, our family is opening a coffee shop and community hub, "The South LA Cafe," on the corner of King Blvd and Western Ave. We started the South LA Cafe because, after decades of living in a food desert, we wanted fresh, affordable and healthy food options for ourselves and our neighbors. Instead of waiting for it to arrive, we decided to take a leap of faith and provide it ourselves. We believed if we build it, they would come, and we are so grateful that you did! South LA Cafe is a community space to take pride in the history, legacy, and future of the South Central Community.
While we have some money to get this going, we are DEFINITELY going to need financial support to break ground next month on construction. We are setting up a GoFundMe page so that our friends and family (you), can support us financially and also share in their various circles and communities.
If you believe in supporting black businesses, small businesses, family businesses, and local businesses, please help us. Dig deep and donate as much money as you can, so we can create a sacred and soulful space for you and others in our community!
For more info and to get notified of our launch party check out our website here: https://www.southlacafe.com
Thank you!
Joe, Celia, Ava & Layla

WHAT IS OUR GOAL?
Help us a bring a family-owned, coffee shop to South Central Los Angeles! South LA Cafe is not a big corporation like Starbuck's, we're a local, mom and pop coffee shop, created by the people, for the people, who actually live in the community. a sweet spot that we can hold onto and always feel like we belong. A space that is OURS in the middle of mounting corporate development and gentrification. In addition to coffee, it will provide healthy grab and go food options and community arts, culture, and social justice programming. Our tagline is, "Building Community, through Coffee, Culture, and Connection."
WHAT IS OUR COMMITMENT?
1) WE WILL PROVIDE HEALTHY & AFFORDABLE OPTIONS: We are committed to bringing to our South LA community the same quality food and drinks found in other neighborhoods, but with pricing that is affordable.
2) WE WILL BE A SOUTH CENTRAL LA CULTURAL HUB: We are committed to playing our part in keeping alive the vibrant culture and history of South Central Los Angeles. In addition to coffee, we will provide community arts, culture, music, and social justice programming.
3) WE WILL SUPPORT THE COMMUNITY: We are committed to becoming a central hub in the community where everyone will know your name, and where you will feel a sense of belonging. The SLAC will become a special spot in the neighborhood where everyone is welcome!
WHY DO WE NEED $30,000?
Your donation will be applied to Phase One of our Six Phase Plan. Contributions will be applied to permit fees, architect fees, and construction fees. We have a long-term $1,000,000 fundraising goal which will be rolled out in six phases over a 3-year period. We want to create a beautiful space as well as community programming to allow for art, cultural, educational, and social justice programming. We are not just a coffee shop like Starbuck's but an actual multi-purpose community space. Imagine the good we can do in our community with $1,000,000 donated by people around the world who believe in this vision? Imagine the generosity of programming and resources we can provide our underserved and ignored community members. The impact will be HUGE! We are BIG thinkers and we will literally change our community with this fundraiser! $1,000,000 is just a fraction of the money we need to be invested in our people. This $1,000,000 will be raised in 6 phases of which Phase 1 is $30,000 to begin construction next month!
WHO ARE WE & WHAT IS OUR MISSION?
We're the Ward-Wallace Family. We've lived in South LA for most of our lives and are deeply rooted in the community. In a response to the epidemic of rampant gentrification in our South Central community and the desire to help be a part of the movement to keep the history, culture, and community intact, our family is opening a coffee shop and community hub, "The South LA Cafe," on the corner of King Blvd and Western Ave. We started the South LA Cafe because, after decades of living in a food desert, we wanted fresh, affordable and healthy food options for ourselves and our neighbors. Instead of waiting for it to arrive, we decided to take a leap of faith and provide it ourselves. We believed if we build it, they would come, and we are so grateful that you did! South LA Cafe is a community space to take pride in the history, legacy, and future of the South Central Community.
While we have some money to get this going, we are DEFINITELY going to need financial support to break ground next month on construction. We are setting up a GoFundMe page so that our friends and family (you), can support us financially and also share in their various circles and communities.
If you believe in supporting black businesses, small businesses, family businesses, and local businesses, please help us. Dig deep and donate as much money as you can, so we can create a sacred and soulful space for you and others in our community!
For more info and to get notified of our launch party check out our website here: https://www.southlacafe.com
Thank you!
Joe, Celia, Ava & Layla
Fundraising team: The Ward-Wallace Family (2)
Joe Ward-Wallace
Organizer
Los Angeles, CA
Celia Ward-Wallace
Team member
