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Jaclyn Leedy has always loved dogs.
For the past five years, the longtime Oregonian volunteered with Free State Four Paws, an Alabama-based dog rescue located in a county without a shelter. The more involved she got, the more she felt the need to help. She got an idea for spreading awareness through a warm, comforting moment: your morning cup of coffee.
“I knew I wanted to get adoption stories on coffee bags,” Leedy says. “It’s a canvas you can use for change. Maybe you have that bag in your kitchen for a week, maybe months. Every time you see that bag, you’re taking in that label.”
Leedy and her partner, Mark Wilcox, launched Mutt’s Coffee in November 2020, offering premium roasted coffee beans by the bag, each featuring the face and story of an adopted dog from Free State Four Paws, with 25% of profits going to the organization. Their online store now ships nationwide, and their cold brew stand is an institution at several Portland-area farmers markets. She estimates they’ve donated over $1,000 so far, and that number is sure to grow— the coffee is quite good.
“It’s not cheap coffee with good dog stories,” Leedy says. “It’s good coffee with good dog stories.”