thedrifter
02-03-08, 08:12 AM
Big brother keeps promise after return from war
By MICHAEL BECKER Chronicle Staff Writer
Ever since she was a teenager, Christine Cavanaugh has dreamed of owning her own business.
Specifically, Cavanaugh wants her own coffee kiosk, where commuters will be able to pick up a latte and muffin on the way to work.
But getting the loans needed to make that dream a reality has been hard for the 21-year-old entrepreneur.
“It’s much harder than I thought it was going to be,” she said.
But now, thanks to a promise made by her older brother before he was shipped off to Iraq, Cavanaugh is just one month away from opening her Bumble Bean kiosk in Bozeman.
“It’s just been such a long struggle that it’s hard to realize it’s actually happening,” Cavanaugh said Saturday at a family friend’s home near Belgrade, where the hut is being built.
Cavanaugh has worked in coffee kiosks since she was 15, but when the time came for her to open her own, she found banks less than interested in loaning her money. Either she was too young and lacked the needed credit, or banks refused to recognize a coffee kiosk as collateral, she said.
At that time, her older brother, Marine Sgt. Andrew Cavanaugh, was facing his own struggle. He had just returned from Afghanistan. He could either reenlist with the Marines and go to Iraq with his squad, or accept his discharge and come home.
Andrew eventually chose the Marines, a decision that was hard on the entire family, his mother, Tammy Cavanaugh, said.
The family visited Andrew in Hawaii shortly before his deployment to say goodbye. They knew he was going to a particularly dangerous part of Iraq and his chance of being wounded or killed was high.
On that trip, Andrew made a promise to his family. He told his mother, “If I make it back home alive, Mom, I want to do this for Christine, to finance her coffee shop.”
It is a promise the 23-year-old Marine sergeant has kept, despite some disbelief from his sister.
“She kind of thought I was joking around a little bit,” he said Saturday.
Andrew, who has only seen photos of the kiosk, is still with the Marines, guarding the American embassy in Mexico City. Speaking by phone from San Diego, Calif., Andrew said the idea really didn’t sink in for his sister until the 300-pound espresso machine he bought for her showed up on her doorstep.
“Not that I didn’t think it was true, but it was too good to be true,” she said.
The family has been building the kiosk since October. Pending permit approval, Bumble Bean should be open for business at Mountain Supply Company, 210 E. Griffin Dr., in about a month.
“She’s my little sister, of course it feels good,” he said. “But this is really her deal, not mine.”
His parents said that humbleness was classic Andrew. “Especially if he’s expected to say anything about himself,” his father, John Cavanaugh, said.
Christine said she is thankful for the opportunity her brother has given her. As for owning her own business at age 21, Cavanaugh said some of her friends aren’t quite ready to admit it’s really happening.
“I don’t think anyone’s taking me seriously, and I’m like, ‘No, I’m really opening, and soon,’” she said.
Michael Becker is at mbecker@dailychronicle.com
Ellie
By MICHAEL BECKER Chronicle Staff Writer
Ever since she was a teenager, Christine Cavanaugh has dreamed of owning her own business.
Specifically, Cavanaugh wants her own coffee kiosk, where commuters will be able to pick up a latte and muffin on the way to work.
But getting the loans needed to make that dream a reality has been hard for the 21-year-old entrepreneur.
“It’s much harder than I thought it was going to be,” she said.
But now, thanks to a promise made by her older brother before he was shipped off to Iraq, Cavanaugh is just one month away from opening her Bumble Bean kiosk in Bozeman.
“It’s just been such a long struggle that it’s hard to realize it’s actually happening,” Cavanaugh said Saturday at a family friend’s home near Belgrade, where the hut is being built.
Cavanaugh has worked in coffee kiosks since she was 15, but when the time came for her to open her own, she found banks less than interested in loaning her money. Either she was too young and lacked the needed credit, or banks refused to recognize a coffee kiosk as collateral, she said.
At that time, her older brother, Marine Sgt. Andrew Cavanaugh, was facing his own struggle. He had just returned from Afghanistan. He could either reenlist with the Marines and go to Iraq with his squad, or accept his discharge and come home.
Andrew eventually chose the Marines, a decision that was hard on the entire family, his mother, Tammy Cavanaugh, said.
The family visited Andrew in Hawaii shortly before his deployment to say goodbye. They knew he was going to a particularly dangerous part of Iraq and his chance of being wounded or killed was high.
On that trip, Andrew made a promise to his family. He told his mother, “If I make it back home alive, Mom, I want to do this for Christine, to finance her coffee shop.”
It is a promise the 23-year-old Marine sergeant has kept, despite some disbelief from his sister.
“She kind of thought I was joking around a little bit,” he said Saturday.
Andrew, who has only seen photos of the kiosk, is still with the Marines, guarding the American embassy in Mexico City. Speaking by phone from San Diego, Calif., Andrew said the idea really didn’t sink in for his sister until the 300-pound espresso machine he bought for her showed up on her doorstep.
“Not that I didn’t think it was true, but it was too good to be true,” she said.
The family has been building the kiosk since October. Pending permit approval, Bumble Bean should be open for business at Mountain Supply Company, 210 E. Griffin Dr., in about a month.
“She’s my little sister, of course it feels good,” he said. “But this is really her deal, not mine.”
His parents said that humbleness was classic Andrew. “Especially if he’s expected to say anything about himself,” his father, John Cavanaugh, said.
Christine said she is thankful for the opportunity her brother has given her. As for owning her own business at age 21, Cavanaugh said some of her friends aren’t quite ready to admit it’s really happening.
“I don’t think anyone’s taking me seriously, and I’m like, ‘No, I’m really opening, and soon,’” she said.
Michael Becker is at mbecker@dailychronicle.com
Ellie