At the church I attend there is a ministry called Blessed Beans Ministry. Simply put, it's a coffee shop. However, it's different from the typical coffee shop. It's run solely on donations and volunteers. No one has to pay for a drink if they don't want to. Some people donate little, some don't donate, and some donate more than enough. But the amount doesn't matter. It's there to serve.
Each month a different program in the church is given the proceeds from that month's sales. The program has to request the money before the month and can't request it for back to back months. Various programs include Awana, the Women 2 Women group, the Men's ministry, missions, and more. But it's the coffee shops mission to support other ministries within our church.
I have been helping out with the coffee shop for several months now. I learned about to make various drinks - mochas, carmel maachiatos, Italian sodas, etc - and how to serve with a smile. I have been able to meet a lot of people in the church that I hadn't met before and I've been able to meet and welcome new visitors. I have actually really enjoyed working there! Last night we had a meeting to go over a few things - review a few things about making drinks, talk about scheduling, talk about things that work and don't work, discuss improvements, and have a devotion together as a group.
Last night the leadership also announced an addition to their group. I was moved up from a regular barista to a lead barista. This means I am a shift leader. Each week they schedule 3 people to work - 1 lead and 2 regular baristas. The lead is there in case they get slammed on orders, need reminders on how to do things, or in case someone calls in and can't make it. The lead also gets a key to the cash drawer. As a lead my responsibilities don't change too much, the big difference is I'm the shift leader every fourth week and responsible for my team. It also means less stress for the original 3 leads because it frees up one more week for their rotation. I'm excited to begin this new responsibility but praying it doesn't go to my head and I stay humble.
