On October 13 - 15, 2023, Hawai'i Coffee Association (HCA) will be hosting the Hawai'i Brewers Cup Preliminary Competition, an important event that is helping to kick off the US Coffee Championship season. Up to 16 competitors will take the stage to put their brewing skills to the test (later this month, our blog will dive deeper into the ins and outs of Brewers Cup).
In addition to hosting the competition, Hawai'i Coffee Association will be holding a fundraiser for the Maui coffee community. We had a chance to catch up with Madeleine Longoria Garcia of Hawai'i Coffee Association and the rest of the team to learn more about how they are leveraging the platform to support, in a big way, those who were devastated by the Maui fires.
"We want folks to know this is a big deal and it’s personal for us all - once the fires happened on Maui, our planning committee knew we wanted to pivot the original intent of this event and make it a fundraiser for our Maui community," Garcia shares. "As individuals and companies, we’ve made our own contributions and we know we can do more as a unified group and we wanted to bring more attention to the coffee community that was greatly affected on Maui."
"The largest coffee farm on the island, MauiGrown, lost their warehouse (where all their green coffee was stored), part of their mill, and their storefront in the fires - right at the beginning of harvest season. Additionally, at least half a dozen cafes were lost to the fires. So, all proceeds from this event are going to the Maui Coffee Association to directly benefit their members. We’ve also expanded the event to create a Coffee Festival where we’ll have local vendors from other coffee companies, local makers, and other businesses who are donating a portion of proceeds to their choice between the Maui Coffee Association or the Help Lahaina Get Caffeinated Again GoFundMe Campaign created specifically for the cafes that were lost to the fires."
Bonavita is donating Variable Temperature Kettles and an Enthusiast Brewer to the Coffee Festival marketplace, with all proceeds going towards the Maui fundraising campaigns.
You can find out more about the upcoming Hawai'i Brewers Cup Preliminary Competition and how to support their fundraising efforts for the Maui coffee community here.
