Dayton Daily News - August 6, 2009
BellHop Cafe coffee shop brews up mix of religion and community
BELLBROOK — Mike Sabin, who runs Wings Christian Fellowship with his wife, Heather, is trying to reach out to local high school and college students with his BellHop Cafe.
And while he knows many young people are unsure about religion, he said the cafe, at 26 N. West St. adjacent to Bellbrook Plaza, shouldn’t scare anyone off.
“I had somebody tell me last week that they didn’t like organized religion, and I told them, ‘Well, you’re in the right place, because we’re totally unorganized,’ ” Sabin said.
BellHop Cafe is a coffeehouse designed for high school students and young adults, open Thursday nights from 7 to 10 p.m. It offers free Internet access, a pool table and a focus on music, plus coffee, soda and snacks at reasonable prices.
BellHop often brings in Christian musicians for concerts, and is always set up for open jam sessions for anyone who wants to bring their instruments.
“Music is a medium for communicating a message, and we want the message to have some value,” Sabin said.
“Some of the kids are into darker music, and we say you can scream and play your music as loud as you want and play anything you want, as long as it doesn’t dishonor God. And the kids are OK with that.”
The church fellowship, which is nondenominational and nonprofit, has home groups and a Sunday celebration, but Sabin said Thursday nights are not set up as a church atmosphere.
“There’s no Bible study. Kids drop in, come and go between 7 and 10. They hang out with their friends, play pool, if weather’s decent play cornhole outside,” he said. “We just want a wholesome environment where kids can hang out.”
The students who were at BellHop last Thursday were playing pool and games and listening to music. Jacob Panstingel and Joey Sabin of Kettering called it a nice place to hang out and relax, “with a comfortable, chilled vibe.”
Mike Sabin said the café draws students from all around the area, and he’s trying to get more kids from the immediate Bellbrook and Sugarcreek Twp. areas. He said he’s been networking with some other local churches, inviting their youth leaders to participate.
Sabin said pastoral ministry is a second career for him. He grew up in Dayton, graduated from Wright State and then spent 20 years in real estate and property management. Then in the mid-’90s, he went on staff with the Church of the Messiah and served as worship leader and church administrator for eight years.
“But I wanted to do something that was more outreach oriented,” he said. “I fell in love with Bellbrook and wanted to do something that was out of the box.”
Coffeehouse for all
Sabin said he plans to branch out next month, offering a full-service coffeehouse to the public at the 26 N. West St. location. He said by mid-September, he hopes to open three days a week, possibly Wednesday, Thursday and Friday in the morning and evening.
“We’re trying to connect with people in the community, and there’s not another coffeehouse in Bellbrook now,” Sabin said. “We want to provide a quality product in an atmosphere that’s a nice, fun place to come. We’ll serve coffee and build relationships with the community.”
By Jeremy P. Kelley, Staff Writer
Contact this reporter
at (937) 225-2278 or
jkelley@DaytonDailyNews.com.