At 1951 Coffee Company, we blend the warmth of coffee with the strength of community to uplift refugees on their journey to new beginnings in the United States.

Who We Are

1951 Coffee Company, founded in 2015, is a non-profit specialty coffee organization that promotes the well-being of the refugee community in the United States by providing job training and employment to refugees, asylees, and special immigrant visa holders while educating the surrounding community about refugee life and issues.

Our name is derived from the UNHCR’s 1951 Refugee Convention which first defined and set forth guidelines for the protection of refugees. In the spirit of this convention, 1951 Coffee works with refugees to help them overcome the unique barriers they face in seeking and sustaining employment. 

Third Space Theory

A Third Space is a place between home and work or home and school that serves as the primary external social connection point for members of a given community. In the United States the coffee shop serves as on of our primary third spaces. If we are to welcome refugees into the United States then the coffee shop can serve as a platform to help bring newcommers into the center of American life, not just as observers or participants in culture, but as co-creators of a shared culture.