Having grown up in the farm country of Southern Minnesota, coffee was the beverage that ended your meal with dessert. This culture of family/community formed around the family table and a cup of Joe. After leaving the comfort of family and discovering other forms of a coffee and brewing methods. Coffee came out of a can that smelt great when you opened and after a week it had that off taste. The special coffee shops were starting to show up in the Midwest. I had been known to drive one hour for a “good cup of coffee” Then life took a turn to be self-sufficient, learn how to do things ourselves. I started by ordering green coffee beans and roasting them in an old popcorn popper just for Ruth and myself, and others. I received a trip to Santa Martha Nicaragua where I met coffee farmers. My community heart grew, seeing how they live, work hard for me to have a 4.00 cup of coffee, and they have no running water. Then others started seeing the need of Santa Martha and wanting to give back by drinking coffee from the Nicaraguan region. I purchased a commercial roaster and more green beans. SMC was born. Over the past three years, there has been a growth in the coffee house to be more like micro-roasters. This has increased the demand for more regional direct trade community green coffee beans. This has driven me to be more of an importer as well as a roaster.