Lattes for Literacy

Background

You should know that I’m a Millennial. I order a take-out latte almost every single day.

For years I’ve been asked, “You know you can just make coffee at home, right?” But nothing really convinced me to change my coffee-spending habits…until now!

While walking to my favorite coffee shop for my morning fix, I was thinking about how I could make a difference and raise awareness about local libraries and other literacy initiatives.

A voice in my head said, “You could stop buying coffee altogether and just donate that money.” However, the thought of completely eliminating my morning coffee habit did not appeal to me, but then I had another idea.

Lattes for Literacy

Instead of ruling out take-out coffee, I decided to start modifying my coffee order to a less expensive option. The money I saved through each order could then be donated to local libraries and literacy initiatives in the East Bay.

Making It Happen

My go-to coffee order is a medium latte. I know there are options at almost every single coffee shop that are less expensive than that.

  • For example, a medium drip coffee at a national chain in my area is $2 less than a medium latte. Over a year, that adds up to $730.00!
  • Another example is if I order a small latte, which is $0.50 less than the medium. Over a year, that adds up to $182.50.

Like a lot of people, I order my coffee in a mobile app. Each week, it is easy for me to look back on what I have ordered and add up the savings!