Run a "safehouse" for inner city kids

Lately my heart has started to drum to a different beat. I have always dreamed of having a coffee shop/ bookstore/ music venue. But now I want it for a different purpose. I was to work with Jr. High and high school students in an inner city (Phoenix, Chicago, Philly, LA, Seattle???). I want to be a place that these students can come after school; they can hang out, play games and have adults there to help them with homework and life choices. I want it to be an open-late come whenever you need to type of place. Somewhere that locals come to hang out and children come to stay out of trouble. We’ll have to wait and see what happens…

Watching television growing up I would always love shows because the parents would look at their children and say “You can grow up to be whatever you want to be… dream big” or “You can do anything your put your mind to”. My family was more realistic. My parents have always been encouraging and loving and helpful in anything we wanted to do. But there was never the “dream big” talk. So when I got to high school and all my teachers and friends started saying “What are you going to do with your life?” I started saying “I DONT KNOW!”. So I started to dream big. I started to think about what I love. My first job was at a coffee shop. I LOVE people. I love to be around people, the conversations that start over a cup of coffee and a piece of cake are amazing. I love to see new friendships start, even if those people only see eachother once a week at the coffee shop. I want to open a place that provides a home to people, its inviting and fun, somewhere that people can come and hang out without having to order anything. Where people come for weekly games and conversation. But I want it to be more than that. I want it to be a live music venue and one of those places with sheet music you cant find anywhere else and music lessons in the back and records, walls of records and cd’s. I want it to be a real place for real people. I want it to make a difference.