PHOENIX — Coffee is more than just good for that caffeine fix, it's also good for the community.
"People always ask me, 'What's your favorite coffee?' and I tell them, 'the next one,' because it always comes with my friends and family around me," said Aaron Schofield, the owner of Luanas Coffee and Beer in Phoenix.
While many of Schofield's customers come to him for their daily caffeine pick-me-up, during the shutdown, he was the one in need of a little boost.
"A year and a half ago, COVID came, we got shut down and it felt a lot like our company was in this downward spiral," Schofield said.
One of his loyal customers, Brynna Valor, who also happens to be a local musician, put on live virtual concerts to raise money for the struggling local coffee shop.
"She helped bring us back up when she sang for us and really saved us," Schofield said.
Keeping the coffee shop running wasn't the only battle Valor was fighting. She was also being treated for stage three breast cancer at the same time.
For National Coffee Day, Luanas and 12 News teamed up to pay it forward and surprised Valor with $100, a card full of 'thank you' messages, and her favorite coffee and food from Luanas.
"It's kind of a God thing that Luanas is right up the street, literally a mile away from the cancer center," Valor said.
"Especially on my bad days, I can pop in here and just know that the fam is here and it always lifts my spirits. Just little moments like this keep happening and I'm not even to the other side of it yet but I can feel it. It's coming for me!"
Valor will receive her final cancer treatment on Friday, Oct. 1 and she will be completely cancer-free.
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