Relationships, Rust, and a “Really” Good Time

Trip Report – Guatemala, Part 1

Note from the author:

Just for the record I thought about calling this report: Friends, Fungus and a (starts with the letter F) good time! I thought it would better describe the trip but might not get past the PT’s company censors.

Anyway, here’s the report:

Until recently, I was sure that one of the best parts of my job was getting to travel to origin, visiting our Direct Trade partner farms, and telling our customers about the experience. I was very, very wrong.

Let me clarify. Traveling to origin is obviously great, but telling our customers about what it’s like at the coffee farms isn’t even in the same ballpark as the experience of taking our customers to origin.

Now, let me start by telling you who went to Guatemala with me (in the order of arrival to my house):

Tom Billionis, a good friend, amazing guy, and the owner of one of the finest cafes in the Midwest; the Coffee Ethic in Springfield, MO. I dare you to meet Tom and not like him. I double, triple dog dare you. He’s been a PT’s customer since the day his cafe opened (five years ago) and actually went with Jeff and few others to El Salvador a couple of years ago. He was excited for the chance to meet our Guatemalan coffee producers, and we were happy to have him along for the trip.

Second to arrive (perhaps only because of a poorly timed flat tire), was our own Brent Piepergerdes. Brent has been with PT’s for a while but has recently taken on the position of Finance Director here at PT’s and is a fantastic member of our team. I’m excited about the work that Brent does and thought it was awesome that he was coming along for his first origin trip. Brent is well traveled and knowledgeable about areas outside the US (he holds a Phd in Geography), but coffee farms were going to be a new experience for him.

Last, but certainly not least, is a guy that never showed up at my house at all (probably because we scheduled to meet him in Houston), Kevin Kerkoff. Kevin is the general manager for a massive operation on the campus of Purdue University known as Greyhouse Coffee. Greyhouse is a ministry based cafe that specializes in having great coffee, making delicious crepes, and being the nicest people on the planet. Kevin is a trained chef, a husband, and father to three (soon to be four) kids. Wait…I hope I’m allowed to tell people that now (sorry if it’s still a secret Kev). The good news is most people have already stopped reading this by now!

That’s our team! I hope you enjoyed the introductions. In my next post, we will look at what we actually did in Guatemala. I’ll give you a little teaser: there’s a nail biter of a flight, four grown men start finger counting to figure out the currency exchange, and we hitch a ride with one of the most celebrated coffee farmers in the world.

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