Like a Good Neighbor

The Good Neighbor Coffee House is situated on a side street, just south of downtown in Lacombe, Alberta. It's not just the name that communicates the virtues of neighborliness either -- inside the modern-looking building, the muted colors and the brass machinery convey a certain warmth; the baristas are friendly, the seating is arranged in such a way as to invite conversation, even with strangers. Rick Abma opened the place just a few weeks ago, and judging by the steady stream of business mid-afternoon on a Monday, word is getting around about the Good Neighbor Coffeehouse. Sure, there's a Tim Hortons or two within walking distance, but people come to the GNC for something they can't typically get at a chain coffee shop: neighboring.

Rick is a pastor by trade, but he didn't start the GNC as a way to hoodwink unsuspecting people into coming to church. And neither did he do it with the goal of making money (though it should be noted that the GNC is a for-profit business, that uses the profits to help fund a nonprofit ministry serving the greater Lacombe community). Rather, the Good Neighbor Coffeehouse is primarily a way for Rick to foster what he calls neighboring. In his book "Neighboring For Life" he puts it this way: "Coffee Roasting is a creative hobby I began to explore as a way to share a gift with my neighbours and eventually, I turned it into a small business." This is a business with a mission bigger than profit -- it's a mission focused on the growth of community.

From Rick's point of view, our neighborhoods and our communities have lost the points of connection that once held us together. As we chatted over a cup of house-brewed coffee and a butter tart (one of the finest Canadian delicacies!), we agree that our culture has changed. Where once upon a time it was common to see people sharing space in their front yards, and in the streets, nowadays its more common to find people secluded in their backyards. Where, once upon a time, you'd run next door to borrow an egg if you found yourself running short in the middle of your baking project, now, we'd prefer to drive to the store. What have we lost along the way?  Rick's passion for neighbors got me thinking about my own neighborhood -- I know a few of the names of people who live around me, but how well do I really know my neighbor? Would I even be aware if the neighbor next door were hospitalized? Do I know them well enough to recognize what is going on in their families or in their homes? Sadly, I fear the answer is no.

Rick's mission is to change that. His ministry is aimed at promoting the strength of community in Lacombe, and the Good Neighbour Coffee House is one piece of that mission. Rick prides himself on coffee that he roasts himself; the beans are sourced from friends and ministry colleagues in Central America; they are roasted and packaged at his own roaster, and are packaged and served within days of roasting. The quality of the baked goods and hot coffee is, as I can personally attest, exceptional.

But what I enjoyed most about my visit was indeed the neighboring. People came and went, and each person, whether a regular customer (and there were a few of those) or a first time customer, was treated as a friend. This is work with a mission. It's a workplace is intentional about engaging God's mission of blessing us in order that we might be a blessing to others. In a fallen and broken world -- a world in which the bonds of community are often frayed beyond the breaking point, a world where we build fences or walls to keep our neighbors at an arm's length, Rick's work is about swimming against the current of our culture in order to play a meaningful part in what God is doing in the world. He is using his talents and influence as a way to positively shape the city of Lacombe.

Which got me thinking again about my relationships with my own neighbors. Rick graciously gave me a signed copy of his book, which is chock-full of stories about Rick's work of building bridges among his neighbors. These stories are simple, tangible ways that a person can do the good work of neighboring. These ideas are not out of reach -- walk the neighborhood and get to know the faces of the people there. Sit in the front yard of your house, instead of in the backyard. Learn to be a good listener to the people around you. The Good Neighbour Coffeehouse showed me how to do these things -- and helped me imagine what they might look like in my own neighborhood.

All of us have certain gifts and talents. Most of us, likely, can't roast coffee beans. Many of us may not have the skill set to run our own small business. But all of us have certain relational capital; we can repair cars, we can paint a canvass or a bedroom wall, we can fill out tax forms. Rick invites us to see our skill set as a way of serving our neighbor for the good of our community. And, he invites us to walk across the street in order to get to know our neighbor a bit better.