EL PASO COUNTY, Colo. (KOAA) — News5 is doing something new by trying to connect with the community in a different way. Meteorologist Alan Rose and Senior Reporter Tony Keith have been visiting local coffee shops with the simple goal of chatting with the public and seeing what they would like to see covered.
This past Friday, they visited Drip Coffee House in the Monument area. They met Barb Popovich, who, like many people in the community, shared her frustration with the amount of negative news coverage. When asked about positive stories in her community, she immediately pointed to the coffee shop's 29-year-old owner, a young man who is empowering his employees to enhance their skills on a daily basis. When we learned that many of the items for sale within the shop have ties to local businesses and individuals, Clay, who owns Drip Coffee House, mentioned he even sells candles made by his sister, who owns the business right next to his, Gleneagle Candle Co.
The siblings are running successful businesses side by side in Gleneagle. While the young entrepreneur manages Drip Coffee, his sister Nicole Mendoza operates Gleneagle Candle Company right next door.
But Mendoza's story goes deeper than business success. She balances being a mother, caregiver, and business owner while her son suffers from epilepsy, specifically a rare condition known as LGS (Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome).
At its worst, Mendoza said her son experienced more than 300 seizures a day. Despite treatment, Owen still has multiple seizures a day. Owen was also diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy, and although he can walk, he fatigues quickly and often has drop seizures, which makes him dependent on his wheelchair. LGS also presents itself with cognitive delays and Owen is nonverbal.
Proposed State Medicaid cuts, however, could significantly reduce that assistance.
“Our hours are going to be cut in half,” Mendoza added. “That is half of our family income, and as a caretaker myself, that is half of my income that I get taking care of him.”
Mendoza said the cuts would have a direct impact on her son’s quality of life.
“For somebody who needs 24/7 care, 100 hours is not even the tip of the iceberg,” Mendoza explained. “Nobody knows their kid more than their parent and the care that they need.”
She said, regardless of funding changes, she will continue caring for her son — but at a cost.
“I’m going to be providing the care no matter what,” Mendoza said. “So it really does come down to what do we have to sacrifice now.”
Despite these challenges, Mendoza finds ways to give back to the Epilepsy Foundation of Colorado every year.
"Epilepsy awareness... for me... after dealing with my son and his seizures, I think it is important people understand how detrimental epilepsy is for a lot of individuals," Mendoza explained.
Last year, Mendoza and her son Owen raised $4,300 for the foundation, making them the top fundraising group, according to Mendoza. They've also started selling "Epilepsy Warrior" candles year-round at her shop to continue supporting the cause.
Her advocacy extends beyond education and into community support through pop-up events that spotlight small vendors, particularly those from the local area. Vendors are provided tables at no cost.
“We had one girl who was a cookie baker who came all the way from Denver just to do our Christmas pop-up,” Mendoza said.
Clay's business was full of people this past Friday, speaking highly of both the coffee shop and candle company. The discovery came from a new approach to news gathering - visiting local coffee shops and asking community members what stories they'd like to see covered. This conversation with Popovich, who admitted she avoids news due to its negativity, led to uncovering this uplifting tale of sibling success and community service.
If you run a local coffee shop and would like to host one of our visits, or if you have something you would like covered, you can email TonyKeith@koaa.com.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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