Photographed by Danielle McGotty
What is in a name?
The Rev. John Wesley, an Anglican Priest, lived before even your grandparents entered the world. He belonged to the early 1700s, a time in England when churches served the wealthy and largely dismissed the plight of the poor. Wesley had a habit of breaking this system by inviting the less fortunate into his congregations, so the churches began to dismiss him too.
“The joke was that that he had been kicked out of every church in England,” said the Rev. Kevin Veitinger, local United Methodist Pastor in Savannah.
Wesley, along with his brother Charles hatched a plan that turned the traditions of English faith on their head and reverted to certain philanthropic core values of Christianity. The brothers purchased a crumbling old canon foundery to use as their place of ministry in a sect of faith today known today as Methodism.
From the foundery, the group dispensed clothing to widows and orphans and started a school that met on Sundays to teach underprivileged people of all ages to read and write with the Bible as their textbook, hence the name ‘Sunday school.’
These original Methodists are the inspiration for Savannah’s local coffee shop, “The Foundery Coffee Pub.”
A vintage vision revitalized.
Located on the corner of Anderson and Habersham Streets, The Foundery is nestled into what was once a furniture shop. It sits across the street from Savannah College of Art and Design’s (SCAD’s) foundations building, Anderson Hall.
The building and concept are technically owned by “The South Georgia Conference of the United Methodist Church,” however the idea for the project –and much of the legwork– started with Veitinger.
Veitinger conceived the idea for a coffee shop centered on human interaction, conversations within Savannah’s ever changing community, whether it is about faith or not. Veitinger does minister out of the shop but more often you’ll see him sitting down with his laptop, talking to one of his customers or baristas. The Foundery Coffee Pub is an unconventional atmosphere funded by a church.
“South Georgia tends to be the opposite of progressive,” said Veitinger, “which is why it took me ten years to convince them to let me open this place.”
However, the Rev. Veitinger tends to be the on the other side of conventional himself.
“I always tell my children, ‘yeah, get tattoos,’” said the Rev. Veitinger, “but just think about it. It needs to be something timeless. Something that you will agree with forever.”
Veitinger has two kids, an 18-year-old son and a 16-year-old daughter. His wife, Ginger Veitinger helps him mantain the books at the shop along with other tasks he says he’s “no good at.” He has a Biblically based tattooed half-sleeve on his left forearm and two other tattoos on his right arm. He has long sideburns and wears jeans more often than dress pants.
Veitinger didn’t grow up hoping to become a pastor. In fact, his dream was to be a rock star. He played seriously as a drummer in a couple bands fifteen or twenty years ago before deciding the time away from his family was no longer worth the pursuit of a professional career in music. He still plays in a local punk band called “Jeff Two Names,” though now they only perform for the fun of it.
Back when he was still trying to break into the music industry, he worked at a Starbucks to supplement his income. The Foundery Coffee Pub, he says, is very much influenced by his time with the mega-bucks company.
“Starbucks gets a lot of things right and the fact is they’ve helped create coffee culture in this country,” said Veitinger.
The Foundery Coffee Pub today.
A foundry is a place where metal is forged, so in the case of the old foundry that the Wesley brothers bought, a place where canons were once shaped and created. Veitinger said the inside of The Foundery is crafted to have an industrial appeal, with hints of steam punk, and elements of a turn of the century bar. The baristas often wear vests to create an old school bartender look.
Exposed metal pipes house the shop’s wiring, with a rich gray-colored wall, warm lighting emanating from the lamps around the room, the floors are simple concrete and the countertops are a dark, rich wood. There is a large metal safe against one wall that came with the place, and an old 1920s player piano that was a gift from the owners of Back in the Day Bakery.
That’s the way that The Foundery works, driven by the collective effort of a community.
On Tuesday nights the space turns into a packed out chess group. On Thursday, it transforms into a performance stage for open mic night. On Friday mornings, the back room opens up to hungry college students offering free flapjacks to eat along with “Game of Thrones” or “Harry Potter” themed coffee drinks.
The back community room is both a gallery space for Savannah artists and a free space for non-profits to schedule meetings.
“I don’t want to say coffee is not our number one product,” said Veitinger, “but space is really our number one product… but we try to do coffee really well.”
In part because of the location, The Foundery is a favorable spot for SCAD professors looking to grade papers in peace over a caffeine fix and a hideaway for students to huddle down with their laptops and a latte.
The future of The Foundery.
The Foundery has evolved to meet the Rev. Veitinger’s expectations and to exceed them. He does recognize that the dream only works if people purchase coffee. If the shop can make enough to break even, he says, the mission is successful, “because it will create opportunities for conversation.”
“The reality is that if you let people take ownership of your place they’re going to want to see it keep going,” said Veitinger. “They’re going to buy coffee, and they’ll sit, and they’re going to tell people about it.”
Veitinger wants his employees to buy into the place, to feel like it is their own. He sets them free to create and name all of the drinks, including the “Luna Lovegood” and the “John Snow.”
“This place works best when it is a canvas for other peoples’ art,” said Veitinger.
Eventually Kevin hopes that his baristas, many of whom have or are attending SCAD, will provide permanent artwork for the open wall space. He and a friend are also working on setting up an area in the back of the shop highlighting local bands.
“I hope that everybody experiences the Foundery, at the very least, when they come in, [as] a good coffee shop. And I hope that when they come back it becomes their home. Their second, or their third place, as Starbucks calls it. Where people come to hang out and do their homework or meet friends. If there’s something more we can offer them, we’d love to do it. But at the very least I want people to come in and feel comfortable.”
