Coffee and music bring Okinawa communities together
It’s Sunday morning in Okinawa, and the DJ is already playing. Coffee replaces cocktails, sunlight replaces nightclub lights and the people filtering through the door aren’t just there for the music. They’re there to connect. After passing beneath a decades-old banyan tree, visitors enter a café filled with memorabilia, an ode to a lifetime of travel. Japanese and Americans settle in with cups of coffee as the DJ plays music in the background. There is no formal agenda or expectation to participate. People come to Morning Coffee Club to share space, strike up conversations and make new friends.
Maurice Fowler, U.S. Army Garrison Okinawa casualty affairs coordinator, helped start Morning Coffee Club in May with Tenri Sato, a local resident and Full Café employee, after the two connected through another community event.
Fowler said when he moved to Okinawa, he knew he wanted to create something that allowed him to give back to the community where he lives.
“I’m a person that likes embracing culture. I don’t believe in separating, I want to embrace the culture I’m in,” he said.
For Fowler and Sato, the original idea for coffee club was a cultural and language exchange, but they soon discovered that the addition of music created a more natural way for people to interact.
“The music is an icebreaker,” said Fowler. “You put people in a room and just say, ‘OK, you guys talk,’ and they’re like, ‘Oh.’ But adding music brings down the nerves. It allows people to open up.”
For Americans living in Okinawa, coffee club offers a relaxed way to engage with their Japanese neighbors outside the installation, while giving local residents a place to meet Americans without the pressure of a formal exchange.
The approach has resonated. Coffee club typically draws 40 to 50 people, with many attendees returning regularly.
“When the final song, “September” by earth, Wing & Fire, begins, regulars know the morning is coming to an end,” Fowler said. “When they hear that, they know the event is over and they get sad.”
For Sato, the energy and reluctance for the morning to end reinforces the desire for more cultural interaction from both sides.
“The locals really like to interact with Americans,” she said. “Coffee club gives them the ease of mind. It takes away the pressure of being nervous around Americans.”
That connection is what Fowler hopes will last. When asked about the future of Morning Coffee Club, he simply said, “Long after I’m gone, coffee club is here to stay.”
Legal Disclaimer:
EIN Presswire provides this news content "as is" without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the author above.
