Certainly, in light of social distancing, quarantines, and stay-at-home orders, I would hardly consider myself as a Chief Bean Officer to be on the frontlines like doctors, nurses, EMTs, families and loved, cherished unfortunate souls afflicted with COVID-19. We merely sell coffee.

I was reminded of the immense emotional attachment that we as a culture have to our favorite coffee. It has warmed our hearts here at Detroit Bold, as we have seen orders placed online from people all across the USA this past couple of weeks. We feel great pride that our coffee evokes that kind of comfort in these emotionally heart-wrenching times.

We have continued to do our due diligence and try our hardest to keep grocery stores stocked. We don’t mess around, we get in, we get out. Gloves, sanitizer, washing hands, wearing masks, social distances, we do it all,

And then the plea came in from across our online channels from the medical staff who have heroically set up shop in the TCF Convention Center. It’s a giant MASH unit right downtown, set up to take in overflow patients that this madness has brought upon us, stretching our ability to treat all of the casualties. The medics, nurses, doctors, and staff had no coffee.

From now until it’s done, we’ll make 2 trips to the TFC. 630 am and pm with fresh, hot coffee . We’ll put on our gloves, masks, sanitize and social distance. We’ll get in, we’ll get out. And, we’re going to dedicate each coffee run to someone with a connection to our community.

To our fellow grocers, food manufacturers and distributors, we are with you in spirit. To our 1st Responders and all who are helping in our great time of need, we salute you. To our beautiful state and city of Detroit, we love you, very much.

#bewell #staysafe #coffeeisessential #detroitboldnation

AJ O’Neil

Chief Bean Officer of Detroit Bold

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North, south, east or west, the people and communities that have a connection from this iconic crossroad of Detroit is amazing including Hazel Park. There are histories, cultures and great stories that stretch far beyond the place we call home!

As we take a drive through the towns that line these two world-renowned roads, we’re going to tell a little story about their connection to Detroit.  So, Here it goes!

8 Mile & Woodward: GO!

The headlight on Hazel Park, MI 48030

About a half-mile on the east of Woodward, where West End Rd meets  8-Mile, you will arrive in Hazel Park, a working-class town of just over 16,400 people…

In October 1882, a group of farmers gathered in a home located at the present-day city hall and had a meeting, requesting for a school to be built… Hazel Park began as a one-room schoolhouse the next year,  built as part of the  Royal Oak Township school system and named  Hazel Park School District 8 by school superintendent John W. Benjamine because of the areas plentiful supply of Hazelnut bushes surrounding this swampy area.

Hazel Park experienced significant growth as the Ford Motor Company, based just two miles south down John R in  Highland Park, began to greatly expand. Hospitals, offices and shops began to thrive around the area of 9 Mile Road. In 1924, The electric Stephenson Line was a convenient way for commuters to trolley from Hazel Park to Highland Park and Detroit.

Through the Great Depression, Hazel Park suffered greatly. Efforts to incorporate failed due to lack of infrastructure but efforts to annex it with Detroit and Ferndale also failed. At one point, Hazel Park was the most populous unincorporated area in the country.  Finally, Hazel Park’s first traffic light, post office, and Deputy Sheriff’s office were established and the city was incorporated in 1941.^[9]

It was here in 1942 that brothers John, Fred and Louis Elias opened the Dixie Drive-In, one of the first restaurants, in the midwest to offer curbside dining service. Ten years later, the name was changed to  Big Boy and would grow to several hundred eateries with the iconic Big Boy statues welcoming hungry diners.

“It’s Your Big Boy”

The Hazel Park Raceway opened in 1949. For many years, it was the only track in Michigan offering live thoroughbred racing. In 2018 the track closed and the remaining horse stables were cleared to make way for new warehouse space including mega online retailer Amazon.

Beyond the Intersection: Show Me the Money? Excluding one neighborhood in particular with a majority elderly population, the city’s median household income in 2009 was $46,687, surpassing the neighboring communities of Warren, Madison Heights and Ferndale as well as many communities in the Detroit Metropolitan Area.  Hazel Park’s median household income would be higher than 39.7% of the metro area, including 16.1% of Oakland cities, 61.5% of Macomb cities, and 55.8% of Wayne cities. (Wikipedia).

Tired of shopping for coffee? We make it easy with our subscription program. Order up today!

https://www.detroitboldcoffee.com/product/coffee-subscription-1lb-baseline-8-mile-deep-dark-roast-blend/

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North, south, east or west, the people and communities that have a connection from this iconic crossroad of Detroit is amazing. There are histories, cultures and great stories that stretch far beyond the place we call home!

As we take a drive through the towns that line these two world-renowned roads, we’re going to tell a little story about their connection to Detroit.  So, Here it goes!

8 Mile & Woodward: GO!

The headlight on Bloomfield Hills, MI 48302 & 48304

Eight Miles north of 8-Mile, where 16 Mile Road is called Quarton to the west and Big Beaver to the east straight up  Woodward begins the beautiful city of Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. What is now Bloomfield Hills was a farming area until the turn of the 20th century when wealthy Detroit residents bought up the land. The settlement became a village in 1927, and in 1932 residents voted to become a city.

Bloomfield Hills has Woodward’s steepest hill between Lone Pine and Long Lake (18 Mile) Rd.

Bloomfield Hills is one of the wealthiest cities in the United States yet has many historic attractions and destinations that give this small town of under 4,000 residents a welcoming spirit to all.  A  National Historic Landmark,  Cranbrook’s Educational Community, an education, research, and public museum complex is among the finest in the world. The sprawling 319-acre (1,290,000 m²) campus began as a 174-acre (700,000 m²) farm, purchased in 1904. The organization takes its name from Cranbrook, England, the birthplace of Cranbrook’s founding father, newspaper mogul George Gough Booth’s father.

Historically, Cranbrook’s Observatory began in 1927, The Cranbrook Observatory in the Cranbrook Campus. Free to the public, it is one of the finest viewing places to see our universe in the entire midwest. (photo courtesy Cranbrook archives) archive.constantcontact.com

Beyond the Intersection: Say Cheese Many famous people and public figures of several professions hail from or have lived in Bloomfield Hills, among them immortal actor Robin Williams, US presidential candidate, former Massachusetts governor and current US senator for Utah, Mitt Romney and his father, Michigan Governor George Romney. Also, the architect of New York’s World Trade Center Minoru Yamasaki, Detroit Red Wing and hockey legend Gordie Howe, Detroit Tigers and Baseball Hall of Famers Al Kaline and Charlie Geringer as well as Detroit Piston Bad Boys  Joe Dumars and Richard “Rip” Hamilton.

Tired of shopping for coffee? We make it easy with our subscription program. Order up today!

https://www.detroitboldcoffee.com/product/coffee-subscription-1lb-baseline-8-mile-deep-dark-roast-blend/

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North, south, east or west, the people and communities that have a connection from this iconic crossroad of Detroit is amazing. There are histories, cultures and great stories that stretch far beyond the place we call home!

As we take a drive through the towns that line these two world-renowned roads, we’re going to tell a little story about their connection to Detroit.  So, Here it goes!

8 Mile & Woodward: GO!

Headlight on: Warren, Michigan 48088, 48089, 48090, 48091, 48092, 48093,48097

Head east down  8-Mile  about 2 Miles from  Woodward and you arrive in Warren, Michigan’s 3rd most populous city, behind Detroit and Grand Rapids. Its first inhabitants date back to the 1780s, where several Christian Delaware Indians, escaping from an endless pursuit of marauding American militia, sought refuge on the Clinton River on land granted by the Chippewa. They were ministered to by the Moravian missionaries and constructed a plank road. The Moravian Plank highway, now Moravian Road, was the first interior road in Michigan, was laid out in the winter of 1785-1786 and connected the village with the fort at Detroit.

Today, big business mingles with working-class subdivisions in Warren. The General Motors Tech Center, an architectural marvel, was personally dedicated in 1956 by President Dwight D. Eisenhower. Over 17,000 employees strong, this is the engineering epicenter for one of the world’s largest automotive companies.

The greatest hip hop artist of all time, Eminem attended Osborne Middle School and Lincoln High School in Warren, near 8 Mile Road.

Eminem, aka Marshall Mathers who lived on the Detroit side of 8-Mile  played himself in the hit 2002 movie 8-Mile (Photo from IMBd)

Beyond the Intersection: I Do.  Warren was named for War of 1812 veteran, and frontier cleric, Rev. Abel Warren, the first licensed preacher in the State of Michigan.  Rev. Warren was a traveling preacher who, as well as establishing congregations and preaching, went throughout the present-day Macomb, Lapeer, Oakland, and St. Clair Counties, baptizing, marrying, and burying pioneers of the area.

Want to support the hard-working people of Detroit? Order up your favorite Detroit Bold Coffee Blend here today!

8-Mile Coffee Blend – Deep, Dark Roast Coffee – Strong Coffee – 1 lb Bag

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North, south, east or west, the people and communities that have a connection from this iconic crossroad of Detroit is amazing. There are histories, cultures and great stories that stretch far beyond the place we call home!

As we take a drive through the towns that line these two world-renowned roads, we’re going to tell a little story about their connection to Detroit.  So, Here it goes!

8 Mile & Woodward: GO! Northville

The headlight on Northville, Michigan 48167 & 48168

Head down 8 Mile about 20 miles from Woodward and Baseline will appear on street signs here in Northville, once a Ford Industrial Village. With the rise of industrialization and a more urban workforce,  Henry Ford wanted to ensure rural and farming life remained culturally significant; while at the same time capitalizing on plentiful, Michigan waters that provided inexpensive hydroelectricity to power up his factories. In 1919 he purchased the original gristmill built when Northville was first settled in 1825 and opened a valve production company. The Northville site continued to produce millions of valves until 1981!

In  Northville, be sure to visit  Mill Race Village at the site of early settler John Miller’s gristmill on Griswold St. Here, history is preserved at this gem of a community gathering place, complete with Victorian period homes and shops. A beautiful gazebo, built by Northville high school students in 1979 which overlooks the babbling Rogue River is a favorite spot for couples to exchange vows on Wedding Day!

Docents; or guides are dressed in period costume during  Sunday afternoon tours at Mill Race Village

(Photo courtesy of the Northville Historical society and Mill Race Village Facebook page)

Beyond the intersection: What, Boundaries ?.. Northville is one of the rarest of municipalities in that is rests in 2 counties. Some of the city is in Oakland County and is surrounded by the city of Novi, while the other part is in Wayne County and is surrounded by Northville Township. What’s more, 8-Mile splits from Baseline,  which forks off through a stretch of town, only to reconnect down the road a bit!

Order our Baseline 8-Mile Blend today!

8-Mile Coffee Blend – Deep, Dark Roast Coffee – Strong Coffee – 1 lb Bag

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North, south, east or west, the people and communities that have a connection from this iconic crossroad of Detroit is amazing. There are histories, cultures and great stories that stretch far beyond the place we call home!

As we take a drive down these two world-renowned roads, we’re going to tell a little story about their connection to Detroit.  So, Here it goes!

8 Mile & Woodward : GO! Ferndale

Headlight on: Ferndale, Michigan 48220

Travel north down Woodward Ave to reach Ferndale, a gateway city that borders Detroit at 8-Mile.   First inhabited by Native Americans, Ferndale’s land was cultivated for farming in the 1800’s. By the time it was incorporated as a city in 1927, Ferndale was a growing community of auto worker families. Until the early 1950’s, Woodward Ave had a streetcar system in the median that went from Downtown Detroit to Pontiac, making it ideal for Detroit’s northern suburbs like Ferndale to grow People could take a nice trolley ride to get to work or shop!

Ferndale is widely known as an LGBTQ friendly town and its landmark Affirmations Center on 9 Mile serves the southeast Michigan gay community. Over the years, pedestrian-friendly Ferndale, with its great restaurants and eclectic shops has become a favorite destination for everyone!

Beyond the Intersection: Ferndale is known around the globe as the originator of the famous Woodward Dream Cruise. This annual summer celebration of all things automotive was the brainchild of a Ferndale plumber named Nelson House in 1995.

Beyond the Intersection 2: Ferndale is the original home of Detroit Bold coffee!  AJ’s Music Cafe on 9 Mile, where the Awesome-Style Coffee For Hardworking Humans was first served. To bring awareness to our industry, it held the Guinness world record Assembly Line Concert in 2009. This non-stop show went 288 hours and  won hearts around the world as the “little cafe that bailed out the American automobile industry, one cup of coffee at a time.”

Experience Your Own Crossroads of Detroit and Enjoy it With A Detroit Bold Coffe Mug Today!

Crossroads – 1 Pound 8 Mile Baseline & 1 Pound Woodward Ave. & Mug in Gift Box

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We know you work hard and you probably don’t have a few hours to spare creating a pumpkin spice lattes. So, we found you a cheat to enjoy wonderful Pumpkin Spice Coffee drinks this Fall.

Pumpkin Spice Recipe for Drip, French Press, and Pourover Coffee Drinkers

• Step 1: Add one cup of finely ground coffee. You want STRONG coffee for this recipe
• Step 2: Add 1 teaspoon of Pumpkin Pie Spice (McCormick or similar brands)
• Step 3: Stir the Pumpkin Pie Spice in grounds
• Step 4: Add water and brew coffee as normal
• Step 5: When coffee is ready, pour into your favorite coffee cup
• Step 6: Add a dash of maple syrup and 1/8 cup of your favorite cream or milk

That’s it!

Easy Pumpkin Spice Recipe for D-Cup (k-cup style) Coffee Drinkers

• Step 1: Select a strong coffee.
• Step 2: Add 2 Dashes of Pumpkin Pie Spice (McCormick or similar brands) to the bottom of your coffee cup
• Step 3: Add a dash of maple syrup to your coffee cup
• Step 4: Add 1/8 cup cream or your favorite milk and stir ingredients
• Step 5: Place your cup under your Keurig style machine and brew!

Like the recipe? Take a picture of your creation and send it our way!

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Last Friday, the Detroit Bold coffee team made a visit to the Plymouth Community Arts Council event. Naturally, with coffee in hand.  

Mr. Tim Tonachella was featured at the Plymouth Community Art Council last Friday. He featured several amazing shots of Detroit. Tim is a talented photographer from Taylor, MI who spends most of his time taking beautiful shots of our lovely city of Detroit. We felt it was important to be there to support his work. 

Tim Tonachella said, “I took photos in Detroit because I love this city and it means a lot to me. This city made me the person who I am now and I have pride in these photos of my city.” 

The experience is much more than visual. It’s intelligent, it’s something you place yourself into. It’s extreme. It drives you to develop deeper thoughts. We welcome you to check out Tim’s work and not think at a higher level. On the off chance that you have never been to this show, you are welcome to visit next year!

The Detroit Bold team enjoyed their time at the PCAC. We are committed to engaging in the community and promoting all that is good about Detroit! 

Anyone can be a Detroit Bold!

Try our various styles here & let’s all keep propelling this beautiful city forward!

Written by Alaa Homsi: Alaa is a coffee drinker expert who loves to drink his coffee every morning to start his day, yet one coffee is always not enough! 

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One of our strongest beliefs as a company is to give back and engage in our community. It is so critically important for businesses to learn how to create and set down their roots in areas where they can make the most significant impact.

To us at Detroit Bold, being significant is everything. Founder, AJ O’Neil, built Detroit Bold Coffee Company with the vision of being a catalyst for positive change in a city with a bleak outlook. And he chose a neighborhood that was negatively affected the most by decades of an economic downturn, Highland Park.

Positive change can happen from just one person. Detroit Bold Coffee Company is proof that one person can make an impact. The economic impact of Detroit Bold has created new jobs, helped local charities, fueled hard-working people everywhere, and brought enormous amounts of positive attention to a neighborhood and a city that HAD a bad rep.

Things have changed and are continuing to improve. The Motor City works hard. We make things. We have grit because we don’t let fleeting moments get us down. Great people live in Detroit, and as a result of their determination to rebound, great people are now moving in by the thousands! We are so incredibly proud to be DETROIT PROUD, DETROIT STRONG, and DETROIT BOLD. However, our job has just started!

“Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not.” – Dr. Seuss.

Founder, AJ O’Neil roasting fresh, delicious coffee in Detroit

Detroit has not fully rebounded, and there is a much room for improvement. We believe that our job of making a difference and impact in the community has just begun. We are committed to making our delicious hand-crafted, hand-packed coffee that will continue to bring a positive effect on our beloved city. We hope you will join us in our continued efforts by choosing to enjoy our refreshingly smooth, yet BOLD coffee the next time you buy coffee online or at your local grocery store.

Thank you Jack Lessenberry for sitting down with AJ O’Neil at AJ’s favorite coney, Red Hots Coney Island. You can read his recent article “Hope for Highland Park?” where he and AJ discuss the past, present, and future of Highland Park.

STAY BOLD with our New 8 Mile Coffee Blend!

Written by Joel Sellentine, Chief Bean Advisor for Detroit Bold Coffee Company

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AJ O’Neil, Founder & Chief Bean Officer

Detroit Bold Coffee is now proudly featured as the coffee of choice for hard-working students, athletes, faculty, and visitors during all home Oakland University athletic events.

“Detroit Bold is thrilled to join with the Oakland University Golden Grizzlies to provide the best coffee anywhere,” said Chief Bean Officer A.J. O’Neil. “Students, faculty and visitors all will need great coffee to wake them up, keep them up and help them get their tasks completed. That’s why Detroit Bold coffee and Oakland University will make a great team!”

“Passion. Innovation. Drive. Connections.  These are a few attributes we look for in partners with Oakland University Athletics,” Deputy Director of Athletics Padraic McMeel said. “Detroit Bold shares these values as well as so many more. Their love for metro Detroit, employees with connections to Oakland University and their desire to share their story with this area made Detroit Bold a great fit with Oakland Athletics, not to mention great coffee! We are excited to be partnering with Detroit Bold and believe together, we can share the stories of two great entities – Detroit Bold and Oakland University Athletics!”

Detroit Bold’s leadership team also consists of two former Oakland University student-athletes. Aaron Helander was a member of the Men’s Swimming and Diving team from 2013-2017 and Joel Sellentine was a member of the Cross Country team from 1998-2000.

Aaron Helander, Chief Bean Counter

Committed to Excellence

“I am super excited for Detroit Bold to be a sponsor of Oakland University Athletics because this combines two of the biggest parts of my life.” Helander said. “Oakland Athletics and Detroit Bold are both committed to excellence and I am looking forward to see how our partnership grows, not to mention enjoying a cup of D-Bold at the athletic events.”

Joel Sellentine, Chief Bean Advisor

Community and Teamwork

Joel Sellentine says, “it’s an absolute honor for us at Detroit Bold Coffee Company to have forged this partnership with Oakland University. It’s important for strong entities that make a difference within a community to support each other. As a Grizzly, I learned great things happen when you work together as a team. Our great tasting coffee teamed up with this great university and its students will create a lasting culture of success within the Detroit area community.”

What’s up with all the Detroit coffee hype? Try it yourself here!

Learn more here about Oakland University’s Announcement here.

#wearthebear #thisisou #bebold #boldnation

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