Episode 44
This is Bluegrass Region Voices and Views. I’m Tom Hailey. I’m continuing to experiment with brief episodes where I express my thoughts about places and activities here in the Bluegrass Region of Kentucky. I’m shining an audio spotlight on some of my favorite things to do around here.
I read an article about third spaces. A first space is your home. A second space is your workplace. A third space is a place where you can be away from home and work and do something that engages you in other ways that are meaningful for you. It could be at the gym, or at a park, or the library. For many people it’s a coffee shop. That’s me.
Maybe you also appreciate a coffee shop with a welcoming attitude, excellent coffee, and a seating layout that not only welcomes hanging out but doing it in a way where you can meet other people and make new friends. Where you can have what Brewster McLeod calls table fellowship. Or you can find a table for one, log onto the internet, or write your novel for hours.
If you do appreciate that vibe, I recommend McLeods Coffee House on Southland Drive in Lexington.
Brewster McLeod opened this shop in November of 2019. They survived 2020 and are thriving. You will never feel like you need to pack up and move on when you’re here at Mcleods.
Here are a couple descriptions of them from their website:
“a nonprofit integrated workspace where folks with special needs work hand-in-hand with everyone else.”
Also, “A Coffee House for the community, McLeods Coffee House is a non-denominal 501 (C) (3) nonprofit organization. We are led by a Board of Directors consisting of nine businessmen and women who have a heart for meeting the needs of the mentally and physically challenged in our community.”
The staff consists of about 40 special needs adults that are called V.I.P.s
They create an atmosphere that is inclusive, safe, and welcoming where you can get a free smile every time you visit.
The entire place is different from any other coffee shop space I’ve been in. Brewster McLeod, (isn’t that a great name for a coffee shop owner, “BREWSTER”) furnishes the space with items he purchases at garage sales and flea markets. Almost everything in the shop is for sale. That’s one of the ways they bring in the funds they need to operate.
Brewster began McLeod’s Coffee House after retiring from Southland Christian Church as their youth minister for forty years. His coffee house is a way for him to continue to serve the special needs community he loved and engaged with for decades through his ministry.
They are located on Southland Drive between Geno’s Formal Affair and the Hallmark Trophies shop.
You can take a deep dive into the world of Brewster and this coffee house by listening to a full long form podcast I did with him. Look for Episode 18 dated September 30, 2021, titled “At Mcleod’s Coffee House with Brewster Mcleod.”
As Brewster says when you depart,
“Later, Love Ya, Bye.”
I took the pictures below in 2021. The furniture and the items on display are collected by Brewster at flea markets and garage sales. They are sold to help raise the funds needed to support the coffee house. So, what you see when you walk in today will be different the next time you stop by. Including the tables. If you fall in love with one, you might consider purchasing it because it might be gone soon. And if it wasn’t sold, it could be moved. For example, the large red elephant is now blue, and hangs out inside! It is now the elephant in the window.
