This North Carolina Coffee Group Is Making Civil Conversations Great Again
Image by Courtesy Steve Mostofsky
I am part of a group that gathers at a local Starbucks in North Carolina most mornings. I am 1 of 4 of the most regular. We are a diverse group. 3 are transplants from the New York metro area, and 1 is a local. 2 of us voted for Donald Trump, 2 for Hillary Clinton. Conversation during the election were very “interesting.” Frankly, towards the end, when our local friend was with us, we turned from politics to sports.
This group has been together for over 10 years. I would have never imagined the local and I would become what I consider good friends. I am a Jewish “kid” who grew up in The Bronx. My friend is an ex-fireman, born again Christian who grew up on a farm that is now surrounded by suburban sprawl.
My friend’s mother recently passed, and he has decided to move to a more rural part of the state that would replicate his home when he was growing up. I will miss getting his point of view — and I hope he will miss getting mine.
It’s our birthday and we’re still celebrating!
We hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, we’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s independent Jewish news.
This week we celebrate 129 years of the Forward. We’re proud of our origins as a Yiddish print publication serving Jewish immigrants. And we’re just as proud of what we’ve become today: A trusted source of Jewish news and opinion, available digitally to anyone in the world without paywalls or subscriptions.
We’ve helped five generations of American Jews make sense of the news and the world around them — and we aren’t slowing down any time soon.
As a nonprofit newsroom, reader donations make it possible for us to do this work. Support independent, agenda-free Jewish journalism and our board will match your gift in honor of our birthday!
