Local coffee shop owner proves small businesses can make a big impact
SYDNEE FLOTRON – Oddity Editor
Four Winds Coffee and Tea has been proudly serving the Grand Junction Community from the corner of N. 12th St. and Bookcliff Ave. for over 10 years. Will Kuhlman, Director of Four Winds (and their affiliate, the Christ Center), has made it his mission to bring not only great coffee, but a sense of family to anyone who needs it.
WHERE IT BEGAN
Kuhlman grew up in Montrose, CO. He got involved in his local Christian church early on and ended up attending the Colorado School of Mines where he graduated with a Bachelor’s in Engineering. During his time at Mines, he ran an on-campus ministry. Then made his way over to Grand Junction to run a campus ministry called Intervarsity Christian Fellowship at Colorado Mesa University. For seven years, Kuhlman was a frequent customer at Four Winds and often held ministry meetings there before he accepted his current position in June of 2020.
“I’m an engineer who did campus ministry who is now running a coffee shop. It’s so weird the path life takes sometimes,” Kuhlman said.
GIVING BACK
One of the ultimate goals for Kuhlman, and for Four Winds, is to be a safe and welcoming environment to all, and to foster healthy relationships in the Grand Junction community. Whether it be free meals, study rooms, or scholarships, Four Winds has gone above and beyond.
“We have different programs like the student scholarship fund, which is used to support students who want to go on service projects, mission trips, conferences, etc. In exchange for funds, we provide them with volunteer opportunities either here at the shop, or with various organizations we partner with,” Kuhlman said. “Also, every Sunday night during the school year, there’s a free dinner here for college students. No strings attached, no soliciting, no recruiting, no ID checks, we just come with food for college students and whoever wants to come just shows up. Pre-COVID, we used to pack this entire building!”
Emily Gray, a CMU Nursing Alumni, has been going to Four Winds for three and a half years. Between the campus Health Sciences building being nearby, and her involvement in campus ministry, Gray has been nothing short of a loyal customer over the years. “My favorite memory from college was going on Sunday nights for free dinner,” Gray recalled. Now graduated and working as a nurse at St. Mary’s Medical Center, Gray still loves Four Winds.
“Now that I’m out of school, Four Winds remains my go-to for a pre night shift coffee run!”
Four Winds also offers their upstairs rooms to students to rent out for study sessions, club meetings, or whatever they need. While these rooms are open to all, Four Winds does work closely with campus ministries, something dear to Kuhlman’s heart. Once a month, they host a giant meeting where every campus ministry of every religion is invited so everyone can talk, pray, and plan future events together.
THE PEOPLE
Being across the street from CMU, Four Winds brings in a wide array of customers. While their main focus is on supporting college students, a huge part of the Four Winds population is made up of older folks and ministry people as well. “It’s an interesting dynamic,” Kuhlman said, “…particularly among the older people and the college students. You often don’t see that in the same place, but those relationships really thrive here.”
Of course, like any other coffee shop, Four Winds has plenty of regulars that staff have come to know and love. Kuhlman particularly remembered one man who would come in every day.
“He’s done it for years, and he always brings exact change to buy his cup of coffee. He knows all the baristas; he’s just a really friendly guy. He had to have a major surgery a while back, and he knew that we’d miss him, so he came in just to tell us what dates he’d be at St. Mary’s and not able to come into the shop so we wouldn’t worry. We ended up finding out what room he was in and we sent him gifts! He came in as soon as he could with his new walker when he was healing and everything,” he said.
PUSHING THROUGH
With all of the community outreach Kuhlman runs through Four Winds, the rewards are just as plentiful to him as they are to the community.
“Part of what inspired me to take this job is that I think there’s so much potential to do good things in the community through a business,” Kuhlman said. “I think providing a space like this matters. I think creating this environment is worth the late nights, early mornings, frustrating interactions with suppliers, and dealing with everything that comes with running a business.”
Grand Junction is a unique community and full of diverse people from all walks of life. Kuhlman has used Four Winds to be that bridge among people, showing that anyone can spare a few minutes to meet someone new over a cup of locally roasted coffee. In fact, if anything proves how vital small business involvement can be to a community, it’s the community found at Four Winds.
“My heart has always leaned toward whatever opportunity I have to serve people,” Kuhlman said. “I want people to look back and remember good memories from this place; thinking about the potential of those interactions happening in the future is what keeps me going.”
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