The Give Back Giveaway ~ Land of a Thousand Hills Coffee

photo courtesy of Do Good Initiative

Four years ago I headed up the after-church coffee team at our then-church-home. We decided that we wanted to make our dollars count, so I began to hunt around for coffee that gave back, coffee that did good.

I stumbled upon Land of a Thousand Hills.

One spring morning I spent a sunny hour talking on the phone with Robert at Land of a Thousand Hills. He told me about the work they were doing in Rwanda. The wells and the cooperative coffee washing stations. The micro-loans to widows, and the intriguing theory behind loans instead of charity.

From their website...

In April 1994, Rwanda (an African country half the size of the state of Maryland) experienced one of history’s most atrocious genocides. In just 100 days, close to one million ethnic Tutsi and moderate Hutu sympathizers lost their lives to the hands of extremist Hutu militia.

The 1994 genocide that left so many innocent people either dead, orphaned, or widowed has now become a focal point of the global community. In the wake of civil war, Rwanda made a commitment to national restoration. The government called upon the church to lead the country in reconciliation and asked the outside world to support them as it looked to heal and eradicate poverty, disease, and illiteracy.

In 2001, Jonathan Golden, founder of Land of a Thousand Hills, recognized a simple and tangible opportunity to make a difference in the reconciliation of the Rwandan people. This realization led Golden to start a coffee company that pays a fair wage to the farmers of Rwanda, helps them with their basic needs, and brings a quality product to coffee lovers.

The introduction of specialty coffee to the healing fields of Rwanda proved to be an uncommon opportunity for once warring countrymen to not only rebuild their homesteads, but to work together toward lasting peace. A commitment to excellence in coffee has brought dignity and hope to a nation that history suggested would never recover.

Robert was passionate about the work being done in Rwanda. And equally passionate about the coffee itself. He gave me detailed instructions on storage and preparation, and how to assess the quality of coffee. He explained that the beans are freshly roasted in the U.S. just before selling to keep them at their peak flavor.

So I ordered several varieties, and oh. my. Freshly roasted coffee? Nothing like it.

Now Land of a Thousand Hills also works in Haiti, and has started the Do Good Initiative.

Do you know someone who loves coffee? I sure do... what a great Christmas gift!

Now how about a coffee giveaway?  The winner of this giveaway will receive a 12 oz bag of Land of a Thousand Hills Coffee.  Yummmm....

There are three ways to enter this giveaway (please leave a separate comment for each... each comment = one chance to win):

1. Check out the Land of a Thousand Hills coffee beans. Which kind would you choose? Leave a comment here.
2. You're sitting on my front porch in a rocking chair sipping a cup of freshly ground, freshly brewed Land of a Thousand Hills coffee. I'm in the kitchen taking muffins out of the oven. Who is drinking coffee in the rocking chair next to you?
3. Share the Land of a Thousand Hills Give Back Giveaway with your friends by tweeting or facebooking about it (then leave a comment here). Feel free to use this: "Land of a Thousand Hills coffee giveaway! #GiveBackGiveaway http://goo.gl/m0xkU"

Please include a way to contact you (via email, twitter or facebook) in one of your comments.

The Land of a Thousand Hills coffee giveaway will end on Thursday Nov. 18, 2011 at 11:59 pm CST. Winner will be chosen using random.org.

UPDATE 11/18/11: The Land of a Thousand Hills Giveaway is now closed. Congratulations to Eclairre!

Disclosure: I am not affiliated with Land of a Thousand Hills or the Do Good Initiative. The coffee is being purchased for the purpose of this giveaway and all funds will go to Land of a Thousand Hills.

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