Happy Cup Coffee Company hires people with potential

A grid of photos of employees with intellectual and developmental disabilities at Happy Cup Coffee

Employees gain life skills + a sense of cultural relevance.

At Happy Cup Coffee Company, the goal is to pair great coffee with a great cause. Each cafe (555 NE Couch St. + 3494 N. Williams Ave.) and the roastery provide sustainable employment opportunities for people living with intellectual and developmental disabilities — they lend a helping hand in every aspect of the business, from bagging, labeling, and weighing the coffee to developing the creative blend names.

Hear it from them:

  • “They always ask, ‘Where do you work?’ and I say Happy Cup and I hope to see you there.” - Andrea
  • “It’s the best smell in the world.” - Robert
  • “We make it, it’s the best coffee in the world.” - Mike
  • “I once tried to stay up all night to see where the sun went and then it dawned on me.” - Colt

One of our favorite drinks is the refreshing Watermelon Summer, made with cold-pressed watermelon juice, strawberry nectar, and topped with matcha from Steven Smith Teamaker. Our apologies if you end up humming a certain overused TikTok song.

More from PDXtoday
The 30-ft-by-30-ft sign is turned on for the holiday season each year.
Over the next 10 days, we’re launching a reader-driven campaign to sustain what we do best.
Spoiler alert: Traffic isn’t great. We dove into the Texas A&M Transportation Institute’s congestion data so you don’t have to.
Including gifts for significant others, retirees, holiday parties, young people, and gifts that ship fast.