Her husband, Carlos, was not documented when he arrived in the United States from Mexico when he was a young man and although this is no longer the case, the game against immigrants is painful.
She chose Beauterre for his focus on the Eastern philosophy of yoga and meditation, as well as approaching her addiction alternative, replacing the traditional route of AA. He also worked as an outpatient in Sage Prairie and Wayside.
Thirty days of self-reflection made him think about what he wanted to do with his life, and the idea of opening a café serving the community came to light.
The couple ends up on a lease for a building in 36th Lake Minneapolis at the end of March, and she's in the middle of a Kickstarter campaign raising funds to fund the project. She says the building is perfect, not only because of its location, but because it has two separate entrances, one that can be used by CarePartners and one for the cafeteria and community center.
She loved her job, but in many ways he had led to rehabilitation in the first place. Prior to entering treatment, Armendariz worked through the MN CarePartner organization, which he founded, to offer host families "culturally-appealing services." As an adopted international and former adoptive daughter, she grew accustomed to and criticized the disparities in the child support system. He knew how often colored children were taken into white families and what cultural trauma could result.
That's why getting her at MN CarePartner was so important to her. But more and more she found that the job was dismissed. It was a constant reminder of his own past as a foster child and the difficulties he was going through. He began to engage in alcohol and developed an addiction that, as he says, costs almost "everything."
"I had to readjust my newspaper there," she says. "I knew that protecting my sobriety was my priority."
Armendariz told her husband that she almost wished she could work in a cafeteria like she did in high school and college. He loved serving customers at Nokomis Beach Coffee and Borders Books Cafeteria. She says that her husband laughed and joked that she would be someone with several degrees working at a concert in Caribou.
Instead, he came up with the idea of Coffee Rehab, a safe and welcoming place for people in recovery. Alcohol is not served (alcohol is becoming increasingly popular in cities in boutiques). The store was open in the last few hours so people could still go out and enjoy their sobriety. From coffee to food to artworks, everything would be done by people in recovery, and there would be room for self-help groups to gather together.
"There will be no trial because everyone will get it," she says.
Once Armendariz is committed to an idea, she is fully committed. She accepted the name of the company, the tax code, and a display case in the Longfellow neighborhood. He even received the promised help from Jim Smart, the restaurant designer, who brought us to Betty Danger, Erik the Red, and Funky Grits to make the coffee.
For people recovering from alcohol addiction, finding a place to hang out without alcohol can be a challenge, but a Twin Cities woman believes that it has a solution.
The idea: A cafeteria that stays open until late at night and provides a safe place for those who are recovering
In an empty shop along East Lake Street and 36th Avenue South, Katy Armendariz develops her vision for the business.
"Here the tables will stand and everyone can meet and order drinks or food and play cards, socialize and have a sense of fellowship," said Armendariz.
The most important thing about his vision is that the walls, which are currently empty, fill the space that is necessary for those who struggle with alcohol dependence.
According to Armendáriz, recovering people may find it difficult to find a place to go to either a date or with friends.
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