Willen Hospice hails the Starbucks troupers

For when the baristas at Starbucks’ store in Kingston Park heard they had to down mugs for two weeks for a major makeover they decided to give their time to the community.

After consulting with local councillors they brewed up a scheme to help raise funds at the lakeside hospice.

Now the brew crew are a regular sight at the Newport Pagnell branch of Willen’s charity shop chain as they help the full-time volunteers with their duties.

Morgan Piper, a shift supervisor at the Starbucks store, recently franchised by Queensway Coffee Houses, said: “It’s really rewarding to be able to give back to those in the area. We’re a community store and being able to support our local charity is a fantastic opportunity.”

Dawn Clark, fundraising manager for Willen Hospice said: “We’re absolutely thrilled and so grateful to be supported by Starbucks at the Kingston Centre. To continue to offer our care to the local community, we need to raise £7 every single minute of year and the collection at Starbucks will help raise funds to that target. It’s fantastic too that we’re welcoming Starbucks partners into our Newport Pagnell shop to volunteer. This is another great way to support out work, as volunteers are absolutely crucial to the Hospice and without them we simply couldn’t do what we do.”

The Starbucks troupers will be back serving coffee from Saturday, March 5, when there will be an official re-opening at 10am by MK Dons manager and vanilla latte fan Karl Robinson. He’ll be joined by the Dons’ Head of Coaching Richie Barker ahead of their match against QPR.

Everyone is welcome at the family day of fun, with a charity raffle supported by local businesses, plenty of activities for children and of course the chance to enjoy perfectly crafted coffee in the shiny new surroundings.