Humans of Cranston is a recurring column showcasing the stories of Cranston residents’ community involvement, diversity and unique life perspectives.

Vivian Recinos is the co-owner of Guatemala Coffee Shop & Distribution, a local family-run coffee business, and a mother of two young children.

“Our idea is basically to distribute coffee here in Cranston because we know Guatemalan coffee is one of the best in the world, so you go like, ‘why isn’t Guatemalan coffee selling the same level as the Colombian?’ because Colombian coffee, it’s really good, but if you have Guatemalan coffee, you will enjoy it as well. So, we’re trying to introduce it in this area and the market, and also considering Massachusetts, New Hampshire and New Jersey. We’re trying to let them know that there’s delicious coffee, fresh coffee, and that it can be tasting a different way because we have eight ranges …. We had a restaurant back in Guatemala, so the company that used to distribute the coffee is the same one that we are contacting. We are trying to have this partnership, trying to represent their brand here which is Lucia Coffee; it’s really good coffee, trust me.

The restaurant started in New York. My husband is related to the owner, so we started to talk about having this branch in Guatemala... we started our operations in October 2018 as I recall and it started to launch pretty well …. But [the customers] used to travel during the ending months of the year, so when we reached December, we were pretty low in sales… we had to close after three months, before losing more money and time and effort. So that’s actually one of the reasons why we’re here in the U.S. My husband had another cousin that was living in Smithfield and she had a restaurant too, so there’s a family business there. We had a little trouble paying for the house because my husband didn’t have any other income, so he called her and she said, ‘you know what, there’s no problem. I’m gonna send you a ticket and you can come over.’ She was a blessing at that moment, because if it wasn’t for her, we might have had no home back in Guatemala.

So, we got here and he rented an apartment in Johnston and we started living there practically having nothing, like, sleeping on the floors with no pillows .… We started practically from scratch, and it was really hard. The first year was really, really tough. I couldn’t spend time with my kiddos. So, when you try to see the good things that come after struggling a lot and having this huge battle, it’s worth it .… I started thinking about the good things that you have inside the glass, not the things that you are missing, right? .... Every day is a new learning experience, even from my boys; they are my teachers, so it’s always like, ‘wow! You just amaze me’ -- how they think, how they feel, how they talk, how they express themselves. I always tell them, ‘This [business] is ours. This is not mommy’s, this is not daddy’s work, this is our business, alright?’ So, they will identify that the work we are trying to do better, it’s for them, and they can own that, too!

We just try to build not only our futures, but a future for our family, also .… There’s always something good that you can have in every circumstance, always. Always. It’s hard when you are going through a rocky time to see it, ‘cause sometimes you don’t see it even though you have it in front of you, right? So, when you cool your mind, you can try to see things from a distance, a different perspective, and see, like, ‘hey, I’m blessed!’ You know, we had a lot of things back in Guatemala, our house, our cars, all the things that you can say are like, material stuff. But when you look around in an empty apartment and you see the most valuable thing that you have around you is your family, it’s a lesson. It is a really loving lesson that I had in that moment, and now I understand the purpose of those tough times coming into our lives, and it’s great. It’s been great being a mom.”

Check out Guatemala Coffee Shop on Instagram (@guatemalacoffeeshop) or on Facebook!

This project has been made possible by a Rhode Island Foundation Community Grant, and the efforts of the OneCranston Health Equity Zone of Comprehensive Community Action, Inc. in partnership with the Cranston Herald and Timothy McFate. Want to nominate a Cranston resident to be featured? Email JB at jfulbright@comcap.org.