Capaz Café

07/31/2022

Our incredible Julia Lane!

Please consider donating and sharing so she can kill it in Portugal this year.

Windsor’s own Julia Lane is a competitive swimmer with Down Syndrome and a m… Brian Lane needs your support for Julia's Journey to the Podium - Portugal 2022

11/12/2020

WHAT WOULD HAVE BEEN OUR FIRST YEAR ANNIVERSARY ✨
pt. 2

Starting Capaz was a whole journey, I’ve said it a million times. I couldn’t have done it without my own personal support system, or without all of you customers and believers of Capaz! My brother built the entire bar, my dad installed appliances, my husband helped me paint, clean, set up, dealt with my stress, my sister and my mom were there every step and behind the scenes. My parents would come in almost every morning and fully supported my dream! I cherish these memories.

We had regular customers we enjoyed seeing and chatting with, these people became friends. I think of you all often and am very appreciative of your support! The staff loved being able to interact with so many people and I saw their confidence rise and their skills develop further. One of the main things that I’m proud of, was seeing “neurotypicals” learn to interact with my employees and gain a genuine appreciation for their presence. It was truly such a blessing.

09/03/2020

Look 👏🏼 at 👏🏼 these 👏🏼 beauties 👏🏼

Our amazing Maygan’s greeting cards!

08/25/2020

Talk about a dream team ✨

They’ve been the greatest bunch since we started and we’ve grown into what I like to call our little “Capaz family” - parents included!

Unfortunately, I (Lucy) have had to make the sad decision that our chapter as a café inside The Accelerator has come to an end. I’m not entirely sure what the future holds but I’m hoping this is just a pause in our journey.

I pray that this little project helped others see how valuable and CAPABLE they are. ***Employers, you really can’t ask for a more dedicated, hard-working, ready-to-learn employee.***

As a huge bonus, every day was/is/will be a good day with them. We had several returning faces we enjoyed seeing and have made friendships for the long run.

Going to miss this part of our story. ❤️

(Thank you so much to Donna at Donna-Marie Photography for capturing these images!
And Sunflowers 4 Smiles for allowing us to enjoy the beautiful field you’ve provided for our community. Highly recommend checking both out!)

04/03/2020

Fun fact: My mami bought me these awesome shoes about three years ago for my birthday 😂❤️

I wish I could show you pictures of all my friends who have autism. But I can’t because of confidentiality lol.

I loved seeing everyone light it up blue on Facebook and Instagram. April 2, 2020 is Autism Awareness Day and all of April is Autism Awareness Month so I will be posting some fun facts, educational posters or maybe stories and tid bits here and there.

Saw a post today that I think really sums it all up: “If all you see is Autism, you will miss loving, smart, funny, sweet, insightful, unconditional, empathetic, uniquely observant, impeccably talented, ever so intelligent, and capable of creating extraordinary change in the world.”

💙💙💙

03/27/2020

March 26th is Epilepsy Awareness Day! All of these days are to educate the general population about different people and the cards they’re dealt.
One of my favourite little buddies I was lucky enough to work with has epilepsy and I watched it change his behaviour. Epilepsy can be difficult. One of the most important things I learned was that Grand Mal is not the only kind of seizure (there’s at least FOURTY different types) & a person with epilepsy can have a wide range of recurring seizures which are important to track as a guardian, caregiver or educator. It can take days to recover from a seizure.
It’s important to remember the individual with epilepsy is still that same person, but can’t control what is happening to them physically.
Please try to get educated on the basic medical steps of Epilepsy and seizures, like it says in the image 1/26 people will develop epilepsy at some point in their lives. It’s more common than you’d think!
Great local resource:
Epilepsy of Southwestern Ontario
www.epilepsyswo.ca

03/20/2020

TWO SLEEEEEEPS

Don’t forget to rock your socks this Saturday ❤️

03/16/2020

Hi friendsss 👋🏼

Honestly really sad we have to close but, c’est la vie and I’d like to have a healthy team and community when we’re able to make our way back. Keep up the hygiene practices and prevention, folks.

Going to miss my staff and all the lovely people we get to interact with during this time. But also grateful we’re in a position where we are simply preventing and get to rest for a little bit.

🥰 much loveeee xo

Ps. I’ll post a link later on tonight or simply make an order via DM. ❤️

03/15/2020

Ali Sobh, 28
no. 4

Ali is hands-down one of the most joyous people around.

He’ll remember your entire family tree and want to see pictures of them all. I’ve heard about and met his incredible parents, siblings, in-laws, nephews and heard about alllllll his cousins (S/O to Gadeer though bc that’s his best friend cousin).

Everyone is his friend, or about to be if he sees you! That being said, he never forgets the ones that impact him and I guarantee that you can’t forget Ali! This guy loves socializing, and from what I hear - he’s constantly the life of the party! Dancing all night at weddings, all day at birthdays and I heard he had FOUR cakes this last birthday. He’s for sure the most popular guy around.

If you’ve sat down with him & I for more than a few minutes, you’ve heard him say “Oh come on/ calm down, Lucy” 😂 this guy does what he can, with 100% percent of what he has. As soon as the canister is emptied, he’s filling it up, he’s constantly counting the cups and asking if he can put out more, he’ll stock the sugars without asking. He loves doing it and I don’t ever have to ask!

He’ll make your whole day if you take a moment to chat with him. Lucky to be your “best friend boss” Aloushi! ❤️

03/12/2020

Check out this blog post Steph from Chasing Hazel Foundation wrote up about our early celebration of WDSD. + there’s a bunch of awesome pictures to browse through.

Very thankful for CHF and the ones behind it.

Such a great day 🥰🥰🥰

Had a blast at Capaz Cafe for their open house in honour of World Down Syndrome Day (WDSD). WDSD is actually on March 21st every year. We celebrate on the 21st day of the 3rd month to honour the 3rd copy of the 21st chromosome that leads to Down syndrome. However, we thought we would get into the sp...

03/09/2020

We had a great time celebrating WDSD 2020 early and glad people were able to come check out our little café and meet the incredible staff that make Capaz what it is. Thank you so much for all the love and support we received yesterday.

HUUUUUGE thank you to Chasing Hazel Foundation for sponsoring all the drinks. Steph has been a huge support and a great help to me. I can’t thank you enough but I’ll thank you a lot lol

Thank you to the parents who instinctively just jumped behind the counter and took over the drink orders because you’re always willing to help.

Thank you to the ladies and gents who volunteered their time.

Thanks to Mr. Capaz 🥰

Thank you to those who have ordered shirts and bought mugs and travel mugs.

Anywho, lots of thanks to still go out.

Just know, I’m very grateful ❤️🌻

Capaz Cafe, a coffee shop with the mission of employing adults with disabilities here in Windsor, held an early celebration of World Down Syndrome Day at their 1501 Howard Avenue location inside The Accelerator building. The event featured free drinks sponsored by the Chasing Hazel Foundation, crafts, special guest Allstar Aksel & more. Visit www.capazcafe.ca for more information. - Photos by Mychailo