About Gaderian Coffee
...Our Beginnings
A sermon about “bread and seed” we heard over 20 years ago, (click here for a more recent version) has inspired us to take stock, on a regular basis, of which portions of our income are our “bread” money, and which are “seed for sowing.” We are excited that God has provided this rich opportunity to develop additional seed money to be able to support ministries and missionaries that are dear to us!
It began with a chance conversation with Nathan Hardeman of Engadi ministries. We got to know Nathan, his family and their ministry over the course of several short-term mission trips to Guatemala. As the relationship developed, the conversations became more interesting. A recent one had Nathan sharing about an opportunity someone had presented to him about connecting a US company with a local coffee grower, with a portion of the sale directly supporting Engadi Ministries. Unfortunately, that deal got put on hold.
As Nathan was sharing about the delay, Jim started thinking. (That always produces interesting results.) Why couldn’t he (Jim) start a coffee business to purchase the beans instead…supporting Engadi on the front end, and then use the proceeds from the sale of the roasted beans to support additional ministries and missionaries with whom we’ve become familiar over the years.
Lots of studying about importing, regulations, shipping, packaging, branding…all the pieces that go into starting and maintaining any business, plus some items related to coffee, specifically... growing, harvesting, roasting, brewing, cupping. Then the fun began: locating customers, distributing samples and finally, the first sales. Sometimes we feel a bit overwhelmed, then we remember why we’re in the middle of this adventure: an opportunity for more seed money to share!
…Our Name
Gaderian is from the Old English for “gather/to bring together.” It is in a tense that indicates continuation. The inspiration is found in Isaiah 40:11 as the Shepherd gathers the lambs and tends to them; and, 1 Samuel 22:1-2 as David gathers “everyone who was in distress, and everyone who was in debt, and everyone who was discontented” to become his Mighty Men!
We’re not dealing with lambs or warriors, but we are gathering:
- Friends from across the world
- People over coffee
- Stories and memories
- Connections from across the years to make this coffee thing happen
…Jim & Kelli
God + Relationships + Sports = Our marriage. While we met in church choir in Houston, we have lived in Phoenix for our entire married life of over 25 years. We have a small group of friends with whom we’ve “done life together” for over 15 years…and look forward to many more. Avid fans of our respective college teams (Texas A&M for Jim; LSU for Kelli) we can always agree to cheer together for the Arizona Diamondbacks.
The other thing we can agree on: God definitely has a sense of humor. He has led 2 people, neither of whom drink coffee, to start a coffee business!
