7 coffee shops raising money to help the family of this Tri-Cities leader
Travis Jordan wanted to make good coffee available to everyone.
Now the same coffee community that he helped foster through Rockabilly Roasting Co. wants to support his widow and daughter after his sudden death in November..
Seven Tri-Cities coffee shops are donating a portion of their profits on Saturday as part of the Community Coffee Day in memory of the man who inspired several Tri-Cities small business owners.
The businesses include:
Swigg Coffee Bar at 4845 Broadmoor Blvd in Pasco
▪ Barracuda Coffee at 2171 Van Giesen St. in Richland
▪ Kagen Coffee & Crepes at 270 Williams Blvd. in Richland
▪ Cafe Magnolia at 4309 W. 27th Place in Kennewick
▪ Flying X Coffee at 3012 Road 68 in Pasco
▪ Mama’s Java Mobile Coffee at 329 Wine Country Road
▪ Indaba Coffee Roasters at 8530 W. Gage Blvd Suite E in Kennewick
Rockabilly Roasting Company on Kennewick Avenue is also participating the community coffee day as well.
Joel Grubbs with Transient Coffee helped organize the event. He and his wife, Jessica, were two of the people that Jordan helped start their business.
“He wanted to bring great dreams to everybody and he wanted to see everybody achieve the goals that they had,” Joel told the Herald.
The Grubbs were among the business owners that gathered in the Historic Downtown Kennewick Partnership following Jordan’s death. They wanted to come up with ways to support Jordan’s family and the Rockabilly Roasting Company.
Saturday’s event is one of the ways they came up with helping pay respect to a man who was a pillar of specialty coffee in the Tri-Cities. While some of them carry Rockabilly’s coffee, others simply recognize the importance of Jordan to specialty coffee in the Tri-Cities.
“The coffee community wouldn’t be where it is today without Travis,” he said. “They want to give back. ... It’s just us conveying our appreciation for Travis. Our appreciation for everything that he’s done for us. Highlighting that we lost a person that was important in the Tri-Cities.”
Travis Jordan’s impact
Jordan, 41, collapsed suddenly on Nov. 16 after a couple days of feeling sick, his longtime friend Kagen Cox told the Tri-City Herald at the time. Medical staff weren’t able to revive him.
The former Lampson Crane company roadie opened the doors of the Rockabilly Roasting Co. in 2015 after he and a co-worker had a vision to start a face.
The partners remodeled the former Kennewick Coffee shop on Kennewick Avenue and moved in a 5-pound Diedrich roaster.
Jordan, who had a degree in food science, fell in love with roasting coffee, Cox said.
After a few years in business, Jordan’s partner stepped out, and his wife, Laura, bought into the business. In that time, they have started shipping coffee across the region, and shipped around the world through Nocking Point Wines.
Jordan became a mentor for many of the Kennewick downtown businesses and beyond, including for Joel and Jessica, who were looking to start their own roasting company in 2020.
Jessica had noticed that the Rockabilly’s roaster was the same one that she had trained to use. So they approached Travis about renting time on his. He invited them to come in and talk.
“He said, ‘Yeah. Let’s do it,’” Joel told the Tri-City Herald. “We’ve been able to grow and Travis has been there for us. ... The days my wife felt like quitting, the line he would always say is, ‘You can quit tomorrow.’”
Joel said their coffee roasting business would not be where it is today without Jordan’s support.
Since Jordan’s death, his wife has taken over running the business. Joel said they hope to relieve some of the pressure she has been feeling.
According to a post on the business’ Facebook page, the tragedy has meant she has needed to take on more than she was comfortable with.
“Rockabilly was a vision of two people that worked relentlessly, but when on of those people is taken too soon, the vision might change a bit, but the ultimate goal is still the same. Work hard. Stay humble. Be kind,” a Jan. 24 post said.
