Beth Burkholder, Starbucks icon, succumbs

Beth Burkholder spent much of her time in the last year right up to January 1, 2008 sipping green tea and engaging in conversation with many of the Starbucks' patrons at Starbucks' Camp Hill, Pennsylvania store. In between her medical treatments, you could say that she made Starbucks her second home. She passed away on January 4. She was only 46 years young. In tribute to her, the Starbucks partners at Camp Hill setup a table for her for the last time. As of this posting funeral services were undetermined.

Beth always sat at this table where she literally ran her consulting business with a Blackberry device and laptop. She was an icon of inspiration to all of us who knew her. Her presence influenced everyone particularly in the manner in which she dealt with the pain and suffering. She never expressed the overwhelming self-doubt and depression associated with her illness. Each day came to her as an opportunity to make a positive difference with her friends at Starbucks and elsewhere. Beth had more strength and courage than anyone could imagine; it never ran dry.

Life is a gift. Beth lived it fully. Thank you Beth for sharing your courage and strength.

May you rest in peace!

Cabecar Indigenous of Costa Rica

We returned home New Year's Eve from a wonderful trip to Costa Rica. I'll talk about my coffee farm tour to Hacienda Real in a later post, but now I want to discuss a very important project for a good cause.

The Cabecar indigenous people live in a remote part of the mountains of Costa Rica. They are direct descendants of the people who lived in Costa Rica before the Spanish came in the early 1500's. They have been mostly forgotten and ignored by Costa Rica until recent years. They were there first, but they are last when it comes to government schooling and medical treatment. They were pushed aside and up into mountainous areas no one else wanted, or could even get to.

There is a small group of Costa Ricans and North Americans who care about these people and they put their good intents into actions. We were priviledged during our visit to participate with this great group of "Do Gooders."

We came prepared to help by bringing three large suitcases with school supplies and clothing. We joined a caravan to make our way up a goat track of a road up the mountain to meet the Cabecar. What a trip it was! First gear in a 4WD for three hours, along with trucks and cars loaded with donations. It was the end of the road going up, but they had to walk down the mountain for five hours to meet us.

Here are some links to other websites that describe the trip far better than I can: Hancocks' Esperanza
ABroadInCostaRica.com
AMCostaRica.com

Now you're probably asking, "what can I do to help?"

If you plan to go to Costa Rica, get your friends and relatives to clean out their closets and take some extra suitcases full of donations. Email Ginnee Hancock to ask what to bring. You don't have to go up the mountain. She has a friend in San José who will come to the airport to get the donations. If you want to learn Spanish, the mission operates a Spanish Immersion program to help finance its work.

If you can't go, send money to the Voz Que Clama Mission. Shipping costs are outrageous, so taking items with you on a trip is the only way. Their work and needs are described in Ginnee's website, or you can visit their website at Voz Que Clama. The mission is working hard, with very little resources, to help the Cabecar help themselves. Skip a night out or two and send them a check. You'll start off the New Year right. One of the most popular New Year's resolutions (after losing weight and excercising), is giving more to charity. Don't give yourself a chance to break this resolution. Write a check now and send it to

Voz Que Clama Mission
990 Sunset Drive
Healdsburg, CA 95448

This is a good charity. The donations or money you send are used for the good of the people. No one is making a fancy living off your contributions.

Here is a photo album of our visit: Cabecar Photo Album

Email me if you need more information.

Robert