Readers won’t have to think back too far to remember disability support group Head High’s Big Happy Cafe – the initiative that sold coffee and stole hearts.
The group, colloquially known as the ‘Head Highers’, will be back with another project even more ambitious than the last, the Big Happy Store.
Head High is a service which provides young people living with a disability the opportunity to learn skills which could help develop them a career.
Founder of the Group, Julie Ross-Edwards, says the crew was disappointed when their cafe stint was over, but it was only to make way for a natural transition to a project that will require a more complex skill set.
“The Head Highers were not pleased that I closed the cafe, but we need to do different things. We can’t get stuck on one skill,” Julie explained.
“It was very difficult to close the Happy Cafe because we started to get to know so many people in the community. Confidence and skills were really improving, but we do like to showcase different skills and different attributes so that the young adults can find their pathway and discover what they’re really good at and where they would like to work.”
The Big Happy Store will sell items from local vendors but will also include handcrafted items curated by the support group. Head High members unilaterally agreed the profits made from the sales will be donated to Wounded Heroes Australia, a charity that provides financial support for Australian Defence Force (ADF) veterans.
Manly Observer visited the hard-working Head Highers in their workshop at Darley Smith, Manly, to see what projects were being crafted.
Members of the program, Nat and Stella, sat around the table, using various fabrics and decorations to cut and sew together specialised bookmarks to sell at the store.
“What we’re doing is making little bookmarks to sell at the store because I hear that lots of people like to buy bookmarks, and I thought, why not just make some out of little fabrics?” Nat said.
Stella said she participated in a textile class in school, and although this was not her first rodeo, it was her first time crafting bookmarks.
Nat was happy to still have all her fingers post-sew, as they both jokingly held up all twenty on each hand for proof.
Just down the hall, Joon was in the ‘laboratory’ concocting the perfect tea recipes to sell on the big day. He admitted to enduring a difficult start, but on that day, he had mixed a charming remedy, including hibiscus, apple, and rose, concluding with quite a catchy slogan.
“They’ll love it, just drink it.”
Nearby was Adrian, who was on the web looking for potential vendors who would be willing to share some of their products to be sold on the day. Even in the face of rejection, he was determined to persist in his goal of raising money for their chosen charity.
“We’re trying to find some products and some companies to share with us and to help raise funds for Wounded Heroes,” Adrian said.
“We usually call [businesses] first to see if they’re willing to help us. If not, we just look up another company website and give that a shot.”
The Head Highers first caught the public’s attention last March when after months of hard work and planning their original cafe initiative received no customers, due to limited visibility.
Julie reached out to Manly Observer in hopes of spreading the word of the pop-up business and was overwhelmed by the community’s response, as were the Head Highers.
The new Big Happy Store initiative will open on November 13 and operate for six weeks, every Wednesday from 10:00am to 2:45pm.
Although the shop is expanding its range of products, Julie clarified that people can still expect the same wholesome experience that scores of people lined up for with the Big Happy Cafe months prior.
“This will be a pop-up shop specifically for Christmas,” Julie said.
“But it will have the same vibe. So we’ll have our wonderful live music. We’ll be dancing with our community again; we will serve hot drinks and maybe little tasty bites. The philosophy of the shop is that we will support local sellers by having their products, but we also have the Head Highers producing some handmade gifts.”
The primary goal of the Head High disability service is to provide its members with more confidence and advanced skill sets so that they can pursue fulfilling careers.
From the last time Manly Observer visited, a step within this direction was strikingly visible. Joon, who was quite reserved during the first meeting, spared no time to share his tea-making experience as he cheekily threw jokes at Julie.
Stella and Nat have also developed skill share job opportunities with local businesses, some of which were initiated through the cafe.
“I liked meeting new people from the cafe and also doing very good things. For me, it got me some skill share work experience at Manly Village Chiropractic,” Stella proudly shared.
“I’ve just started my work experience. I’m gonna work in another cafe called Ruby Lane,” Nat added.
“The best thing to do in the cafe was to learn what it’s actually like to work in a business and knowing what station you’re on, how to do your job, interact with people, and serve your community as well.”
If you’d like to not only make Head Higher’s day but potentially give them the skills and confidence to succeed in a career of their choosing, then why not visit the Big Happy Store in November? With locally sourced sweet treats and handcrafted goods served with a smile, it will be enough to have everybody’s head held high.
