Meet Brian Swan and his extra special drop site
In our era of big and impersonal, it almost always feels good to “go local.” Doing so can help us find community and engage with others around topics that unite us rather than divide.
I found an example of this in Brian Swan, one of our drop site hosts in the Portland area. Brian has opened a coffee stand every Saturday in September in his driveway. He is turning his coffee roasting hobby into a small-scale business and creating community along the way.
It is definitely small-scale: Brian uses a manual espresso press to make each cup ordered at his stand. Last weekend two CSA members and 15 or 16 neighbors all took him up on his offer.
“It’s cool! I've met all these people from my neighborhood that I hadn’t met before!” he said. “Pretty amazing. People sit and talk, other people walk up and there are multiple conversations going on. It’s really fun and laid back.”
Brian said he was inspired by a neighbor he knew who sold delicious, sourdough bagels from her porch. She’s moved on, but he recently learned there’s another neighbor who sells pastries nearby. He plans to seek her out and try to coordinate!
The hobby got started 20 years ago when he purchased a coffee roasting kit at his daughter's preschool fundraiser auction.
“I was instantly hooked because the coffee tasted so much different than anything I could buy,” he said. Brian, a retired middle school science teacher, has upgraded to larger and larger roasters over the years and now packages up the coffee for sale in a handsome bag with a nice logo.
Brian has been a FFCSA member for 4 years and a drop site host for 2 years. He really enjoys the customization feature of Full Farm and meeting fellow members.
“I’ve done CSAs for years, including the old style where you get a box full of kohlrabi - nothing against kohlrabi!” he laughed. “But I enjoy being able to choose the items.”
Brian takes care of the customers who use his drop site. “Every few weeks or so, there’s someone, for whatever reason, who can’t pick up their order. I’m more than happy to manage it for them until they can come pick it up. That’s what being part of a community is about.”
And now, they can take a few minutes together over coffee to discuss favorite recipes and neighborhood news.
You can follow Brian's coffee progress on Instagram at @laswanncoffee.
Comments