The café might be going away, but not the soul.
    We received word late Thursday that the board of Soul Café has decided to close its doors at the end of this month.
    This is sad news. The organization has had its ups and downs since its inception in 2003, but it has consistently served as an open door to all who seek a welcoming place. Its founder, Rev. Jill Rowland, thought of Soul Café as “a thin place,” based on the spiritual tenet of a place where God is easily accessible, yet Soul Café never portrayed itself as anything like a church.

This newspaper has typically referred to Soul Café as “a nonprofit community coffee house.”

Its very logo was of a coffee ring (famously reproduced on circular table tops), a symbol, both social and spiritual, of the volunteer-based café’s goal of bringing together people of all ages, beliefs and backgrounds.

But Soul Café strived to move beyond being simply a coffeehouse. In its original home in the Oak Street Mall, and current facility on the Heights, it evolved into a true gathering place, providing a haven for people who could benefit from good company, a hot meal and a sense of belonging.

Despite Soul Café’s closure, there is an attitude, even a spirit, that prevails in similar facilities in the county. Soul Café started small and gained plenty of momentum, and has served as either seed, or fertile soil, or both, for an accepting approach in the community for working together and crossing boundaries.

The inclusive approach behind Soul Café can be found in other places in the community. Nonprofit organizations are typically stretched pretty thin already, but the closure might provide an opening to try to replicate some of what Soul Café has done for the past seven years. It is already happening.

Soul Café and The Bridge (at Alliance Church), The Pit (at Valley Christian) and St. Francis House (an ecumenical youth center in Odell) will be honored Thursday by the Hood River Commission on Children and Families. (Details on page A5.) These services, along with other organizations, businesses and individuals, will be recognized for their cooperative efforts in giving young people in the community both the places as well as the resources and support, to pursue healthy lifestyles and achieve for their own benefit as well as the benefit of others.

One day after receiving their award, Soul Café will hold its final after-school day for youth, and then close.

But others share its spirit, and partnerships are bound to continue.