COLDWATER — Hope Cafe and The Chameleon in downtown Coldwater offers hope for victims through services from Branch County Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Violence.

It also offers hope for downtown Coldwater. It's been a while since an inviting coffee shop with a little shopping on the side has been open. In this case, shopping is The Chameleon, an upscale thrift store experience entwined with the cafe. Business hours are 7 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesday-Friday; 7 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday.

Staff members of BCCADSV opened the doors July 12, then in August headed to the Branch County Fair, where they served the public from their eat stand as usual. So the downtown shop was closed for a week.

Tuesday after Labor Day, Hope Cafe was busy. It seemed people were back into their routine and that included checking out the new coffee shop.

Kathy Cary of Coldwater stopped in because she couldn’t resist any longer. Friends had been talking and it was all good.

Marie Koyl and 3-year-old Jane, were celebrating her first day of preschool at St. Paul’s Lutheran.

Marie was trying to think a nice place for the mother-daughter celebration when she remembered Hope Cafe. It was the perfect choice, she said. Jane was enjoying fresh fruit, an impressive desert and a grilled cheese panini.

Clair Dean met her sister-in-law, Cheryl Parks, for lunch. Parks said she enjoyed wandering around looking at merchandise before Dean arrived.

“They’ve made the most of their space,” Parks said, glancing around the building.

Dean agreed, “It’s a great atmosphere.” And the coffee is very good she said.

Carol Frederick and Jill Avery stopped in after Avery's morning run. Avery said an organization she’s in will soon be holding meetings at the cafe.

Sue Borton, Becky Aubica and Cindy Fergerson are in a group that meets in various restaurants around the area. They were back to Hope Cafe a second time. The first was for lunch, this time for breakfast. They liked both.

Valorie Johnson, owner of Pure Envee Day Spa, ordered lunch to-go as she often does. As she chatted with Kim Hemker, director of BCCADSV, who was behind the counter, Johnson offered some food service soup wells she’d purchased for a business venture that has not yet panned out. Hemker was excited to get more necessary kitchen equipment.

As the two talked, Hemker mentioned that other downtown merchants including Pure Envee and Blush & Ivory send patrons their way.

“That’s what a downtown is supposed to do,” they agreed.

Hemker added that by having a cafe downtown even more people are learning about the services offered by BACCADSV.

While Hemker and her staff are very busy at the Naomi Davis Shelterhouse, it’s not a place for visitors to drop in. The downtown cafe offers closer contact with the general public on a regular basis, Hemker said.

This article originally appeared on Coldwater Daily Reporter: Hope Cafe connects domestic violence victims with downtown Coldwater