A Saugerties cafe has installed a “pay it forward” bulletin board that customers can use to post pre-paid receipts to be redeemed for menu items, seeking to help those in need amid financial strains tied to SNAP uncertainty, accelerating inflation and surging housing costs.
Bluestone Roasting Co., a cafe at 138 Partition Street that serves hot drinks, savory meals and fresh-baked pastries, created the board last weekend. “Give what you can. Take what you need,” reads a handwritten sign by the main counter. The receipts can be redeemed for anything from grilled cheese sandwiches, quesadillas and paninis to every size coffee and tea.
“Given what’s going on right now, and knowing things will likely get worse for many people in our community, we decided to just go for it,” said co-owner Mike Home, who has run Bluestone for almost a dozen of the three decades he’s lived in Saugerties. “Everyone needs to step up to do what they can.”
Hom said he’s been heartened, though not surprised, by how many people have contributed to the mutual aid cafe. While some people made extra purchases at the cafe, others have contributed sizable anonymous donations online, including a former local resident who spotted the program on Facebook. It’s a practice that harks back to Italy’s “cafe sospeso,” ordering an extra coffee for someone else.
“Bluestone is a hub for locals, and people care about each other, regardless of politics,” he said.
A key organizer of the initiative is Saugerties resident Michelle Commesso, 42, who bought the bulletin board that Bluestone is using for the mutual aid program.
“A lot of people I know personally here in Saugerties rely on SNAP and other benefits, ” she said. “This is my community and I want to help however I can.”
Commesso said she aims to extend the program to better serve the community by designing vouchers for distribution through food pantries and other social service programs.
“We want people to feel as comfortable as possible,” she said. “Redeeming a gift certificate might feel better than removing a receipt from the bulletin board. We don’t want anyone to feel embarrassed.”
Ultimately, she and Hom envision a mutual aid board filled with vouchers for people in need from a variety of neighborhood businesses – all with no questions asked.
Stephanie Das Gupta, who has worked the counter for almost two years, says the initiative has proved deeply fulfilling.
“You just never know who is falling on hard times, worrying about where their next meal might come from, or just needing to come in from the cold for a warm drink,” she said. “We are not here to judge or even ask questions.”
In its first week, the mutual aid cafe has received far more donations than meals it’s served, an imbalance that Hom hopes will steady as word gets out.
”If we end up with more donations than food we give out, we will pass the funds along to local food pantries or programs like the Boys and Girls Club,” he said. “We’re also putting the word out to teachers so they can let families in need know about it.”
Chana Widawski is a contributing reporter. Send correspondence to reporting@theoverlooknews.com.
