There’s something magical about the moment the blossoms begin to burst open in Ganges Village, signalling not only the beginning of spring but the start of another Saturday Market season.
For Ometepe Coffee volunteers, those blooms are a signal: time to spring into action!
Thousands of visitors enjoy the delicious, fair trade & fair wage, organic coffee served by Ometepe volunteers every Saturday, but few know the story of what goes into every cup.
34 years ago, Gulf Islanders visiting Ometepe, a little island in Lake Nicaragua in Central America, were struck by the islands’ beauty, but also its deprivations. People formed connections to the tiny island who shared an interest in community development and intercultural exchange banded together with BOSIA in the US (Bainbridge-Ometepe Sister Islands Organization) to found OGIFA:The Ometepe-Gulf Islands Friendship Association.
In the three decades since, Gulf Islanders have fostered and expanded a remarkable islander-to-islander relationship with the people of Ometepe in Nicaragua. OGIFA first fundraised to bring clean drinking water to Ometepe’s 30,000 residents. Since then, the focus shifted to support coffee growers belonging to Coops, plus medical and educational programs. After the hurricanes, aging trees and coffee rust plagued coffee plantations, OGIFA has funded training, replanting and support of an Agronomist through the sale of fairly traded Ometepe- grown, organic coffee.
Despite differences in culture, language, and socio-economics, our little islands — one in the Salish Sea the other on Lake Nicaragua — have much in common. Accessible by ferry, both Salt Spring and Ometepe are home to farmers and families who live close to the land. We also share volcanoes: while here Mt. Baker is a sugar-dusted spectre on the horizon, Ometepe’s population lives saddled between two volcanoes on whose rich slopes farmers work in cooperatives to produce exceptionally fine coffee beans.
From the fields, coffee is harvested and shipped north and received by two organizations in the US - and OGIFA in Canada. Here in Canada, beans are freshly roasted every few weeks by Serious Coffee in Duncan before being bagged and sold. Aside from the enormous benefit of providing a guaranteed fair trade market for the coffee that Ometepe farmers produce, 100% of the proceeds from coffee sales go straight back to Central American community projects.
“Volunteering with OGIFA is a great way to be part of a generous circle that connects growers, community service providers and happy coffee drinkers,” says Debbie Magnusson. “Most of OGIFA’s members are elderly now, and we’re hoping for a new generation to step into the story.”
Islanders can sign up for a shift serving coffee at the Saturday Market or at various events around the island. New members are also welcome and invited to join and help behind the scenes. On Sunday, April 13th, OGIFA will be at the Volunteer Fair at SIMS to welcome new members and volunteers. Another way to get involved is to contact John Moore by emailing him at: johnmoore@shaw.ca.
An amazing perk? Members can buy fair trade organic coffee at wholesale prices.
Market coffee sales fuel more than happy shoppers. The efforts of Salt Spring’s team of volunteers support a secondary school education program, promote organic farming improvements, and have helped community members with everything from sustainable cookstoves to offering scholarships for training teachers who then teach in their local dialects.
“Since 1986, we’ve sent over $700,000 to Central American countries to support programs that benefit locals,” says Magunsson. “It’s more than fair trade: giving tools and help financing means for improving lives through community support is woven into every bit of what we do.”
Islanders can also support Ometepe Coffee year-round by buying roasted whole beans, available at Country Grocer, Mercantile, and NatureWorks. Brewed coffee is now available at South End Sausage.
The coffee tastes great, but supporting a warm, sustainable partnership from island-to-island is the richest part.
