THERE WAS always a place for them. In Jessica O’Neal’s childhood home, their names were all different, but the loving spirit they brought with them was the same. They were children and teenagers with disabilities, abandoned or taken from abusive situations, who needed care and supervision. For the older ones, there were jobs — sometimes — but the jobs ended when the government-subsidized pay to the businesses that employed them ran out, which was often.
“As a teenager, I always thought when I got older, I’d love to have a place where I could hire people with disabilities without worrying about funding [issues]. I had a friend with Down syndrome in high school who had a job at a coffee shop, and I always remember her being so happy that she had a little job. I always thought how fun it would be to bring that special happiness to someone. The world sees them so differently, but I see them as little angels that we’re supposed to take care of because I feel like they’ll take care of us one day,” O’Neal said.
Originally from Albuquerque, New Mexico, O’Neal attended New Mexico State University, and her hotel, restaurant, and tourism management degree led her to Nashville. She met her husband, Chris, while managing a Green Hills restaurant. He worked at a next-door food establishment.
She shared, “It was love at first sight, and we got married and had babies.” They have eight children, one of whom was a still-born baby with Trisomy 18. “I thought, ‘OK, God, maybe I couldn’t handle a baby like that.’ But then we had a little boy, and he was born on the same month and day we lost his sister. He has Trisomy 21, and he’s just a perfect little angel that God gave us,” said O’Neal. “Ever since I was little, I remember my mother taking care of kids with autism, Down syndrome — things like that — and I remember thinking, ‘Oh, I’d love to have one of those babies and children because they’re such little angels; they’re so sweet.’”
The couple moved from Nashville to her husband’s family farm. But no matter how much taking care of her family consumes her days, her heart is always watching for ways to make space for young people with disabilities. She hopes to provide a place where people with disabilities can contribute through responsibilities that give them a sense of pride and ownership and a place where they can spend time like other teenagers doing “everyday teenage things.”
What better place for them to work and spend time than a coffee shop? O’Neal connected with young people in our community who could flourish through work and activities in a local coffee shop through conversations with like-minded people advocating for people with disabilities.
She crossed paths with the woman who manages suites of businesses within the Flamingo Fiesta on North Thompson Street, remembered by long-time Shelbyville residents as the old Mittwede Shopping Center.
You’ll find the Rise Up Cafe there serving specialty coffees, pastries, baked goods, salads, gourmet sandwiches, take-and-bake items, and a variety of offerings. Stopping at the coffee shop refuels your body and your spirit while pouring into the lives of those working there. O’Neal said the cafe’s profits help support other nonprofit groups serving persons with disabilities.
“Everybody loves coffee shops, and [people with disabilities] love coffee shops, too. They love Starbucks just as much as everybody else,” she said. “This is just a cool place for them to work. Making others happy when they serve them coffee or a sandwich puts a smile on their faces.”
It’s where O’Neal hopes to see the community and those with disabilities coming together on both sides of the counter. She envisions the space as a meeting place for small groups and a gathering place where friendships blossom and no one is separated or excluded based on their differences.
“Everybody’s welcome at the coffee shop. And I like the name ‘Rise Up’ because people have got to understand that you’ve got to rise up from this world and what people think about others with disabilities,” said O’Neal passionately. The cafe is a place of belonging.
“God is so good. Our community needs this, and I think we’ll all be blessed for supporting something like this,” she said, adding, “I give all the glory to God. I’m just a small vessel He’s using to give young and older people with disabilities a voice.”
There will always be a place for them. In O’Neal’s life, outreach, and world, there will always be a place for them. GN
