A Standing Thank You to Reno's First Responders
Photo courtesy of the Reno Firefighters Association Facebook Page.
When the Hawk Fire came through in August, our hours moved around for the better part of a week. Cafes closed, opened late, closed again. It was inconvenient, and it was nothing next to what the crews on that fire were doing.
The fire is out and the schedule is back to normal. The thank you is not seasonal, so we wanted to put it somewhere it would stay.
To the Crews
Reno and Carson City sit in country that burns. Fire season is not an event here, it is a stretch of the calendar, and the people who work it do not get to slow down while it lasts. There is no version of that job that happens at a reasonable hour, in reasonable weather, with a reasonable amount of sleep.
To the firefighters, the engine crews, the dispatchers, the medics, the deputies, and everyone who worked that fire from the line or from a desk at three in the morning: thank you. You kept a lot of houses standing, including some belonging to people who pour coffee for a living.
Thank you to the crews who worked that fire, and to the neighbors who checked on each other while it burned.
What August Looked Like Here
On Sunday, August 23, Midtown-Reno and Northwest-Reno were closed. Carson City was open from 7 AM to 4:00 PM at 301 N Curry St. For the days our doors were open during the fire, drip coffee was on us for firefighters and first responders.
That has run its course now, and regular hours and the regular menu are back. We are glad we could do it while it mattered, and we are gladder that the need has passed.
To the People Who Waited It Out
Some of you packed a car at short notice and spent a few nights somewhere else, waiting on word about your street. Some of you opened a spare room for a family you barely knew. Some of you just kept showing up for work while the sky stayed the wrong color.
Our guests were patient with us the whole time our hours were a moving target, and that is worth naming. A cafe only works because the people in it decide to be decent with each other. That week, it showed.
A Room to Sit Down In
The reason we opened cafes in the first place is that life is loud and people need somewhere to put it down for twenty minutes. That is true on an ordinary Tuesday. It was truer in August.
Our doors are open on the usual schedule again. If you worked that fire, or waited it out, or just want a quiet table and a good cup, come take one. We will keep the pot on.
Slow down, drink up.
