Council Rock's STARboro Cafe serves up on-the-job learning for students with special needs

A hot cup of coffee and a welcoming smile — it was a bright start to a Thursday morning.

All around the small café, there was a buzz that went beyond its caffeinated offerings, created through warm exchanges between the young adults who worked there and their customers.

“Welcome to the STARboro Café,” said Renee Albert, greeting each visitor with a genuineness that filled the entire room.

Located just inside Council Rock’s STAR Center lobby, which houses the school district’s A.C.H.I.E.V.E. transition program for young adults with special needs, the STARboro Café and Garden Market in Richboro reopened this week for the 2022-2023 schoolyear.

Sage Wunder, a Richboro resident had returned for her second visit Thursday, after falling in love with the café just a day earlier.

“Everyone is friendly and they serve a really good cup of coffee. It’s a great thing and I look forward to coming here more,” she said.

The café, which is open to the community, first started in March 2021 and was designed to provide students with the opportunity to learn social and pre-vocational skills in a comfortable work setting.

Wendy Lauch, a teacher who oversees the A.C.H.I.E.V.E. program, said the café teaches the students skills they can use out in the community, such as communication, time management, flexibility, interacting with others and feeling confident in themselves.

“This program allows our students to get in front of their community, and hopefully it leads to the possibility of getting a job later in the community,” Lauch said.

In addition to the café, the A.C.H.I.E.V.E. program works with community partners, like St. Mary’s Health, Newtown Athletic Club, Classic Rock Auto Detailing, Bake Ability and Chartwell Food Services, to help provide other workplace experiences its students.

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Lauch hopes the program creates more of an awareness about the need for employment for young adults with disabilities.

“There is a need for a connection with their community and to feel a part of their community. Everyone wants to feel like they have a purpose,” she said.

“We have a lot of great partnerships, but we’re always open to expanding those opportunities. If businesses can be open to having that conversation, there’s an opportunity to find what everyone’s niche can be. If we can find what fits for them, then they can be successful.”

When is STARboro Café open?

STARboro Café is open throughout the schoolyear Monday through Friday from 8:30 – 11:30 a.m.

Where is the STARboro Café?

The STARboro Café is located inside the lobby of the STAR Center at 30 Upper Holland Road in Richboro.

Is STARboro Café open to the public?

While many of its regular visitors are students, teachers and staff from the STAR Center, the café is open to the public and community members are encouraged to stop in.

What do they sell at STARboro Café?

They sell a variety of drinks, including hot and iced coffee, tea, soda, sparkling water, and drink special, like their strawberry refresher. Food is also available, including prepackaged snacks, bagels, fruit and daily specials, like cookies from Bake Ability.

There is also a garden market aspect through which the students sell vegetables, flowers and plants grown at the STAR Center’s greenhouse.

For more information:

To learn more about STARboro Café and get updates on weekly specials, follow them on Facebook.

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This article originally appeared on Bucks County Courier Times: STARboro Cafe gives young adults with disabilities hands-on experience