This Shop Will Serve You a Cup of Coffee AND a Heartfelt Discussion About Mental Health
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At most independent coffee shops, you come for a cup of coffee and a bit of light conversation. But at Chicago coffee bar Sip of Hope, you can expect a lot more than that. The world's first coffee shop that gives 100 percent of its proceeds to mental health education and proactive suicide prevention, Sip of Hope also certifies all of its employees in Mental Health First Aid, and they're available to talk with any visitors who need to unload.
According to the shop's website:
Sip of Hope is the perfect space for breaking the silence around suicide and raising the visibility of mental health resources in our community.
We get it! Life is hard and some days we need more than a cup of coffee to get us through the day. We need to remind ourselves, that despite the things we've been through, it's OK to feel pain, it's OK to talk about it. The biggest obstacle to preventing suicide is silence. We as a community can start the conversation about mental health, we are in this together. Prevention starts with a conversation, and the conversation starts here.
Sip of Hope's proceeds go toward Hope For the Day, an organization focused on suicide prevention outreach and erasing the stigma surrounding mental health conversations. When you step into Sip of Hope, you'll see a large "It's OK not to be OK" on one wall, along with other inspirational art and mental health resources available for anybody to use. Plus, according to visitors, the coffee and tea are delicious!
Ahead, check out photos from the inspiring coffee bar and you'll find yourself hoping that more businesses adopt a similar model. After all, we're all in this together!