Parents of 11 children in Arizona have opened a one-of-a-kind coffee business that provides assistance to children who are having difficulty transitioning out of the foster care system.
In 2022, Ryan and Sara Senters, who had adopted nine of their children, established the restaurant and coffee shop Hānai, which is located in Laveen. This was many years after they had established their own social services organization, which is presently providing assistance to about 500 children.
It was when Ryan realized that some of the older children they were dealing with were battling with mental health concerns, including one of his sons, that he was struck with inspiration, as he said to People on the subject. He remembers wondering, “How could we create a system and a place that would help support him and our other kids to be able to be successful?” It was a thought that he had at the time.
He continues by saying, “We have some of the best employees in town,” referring to the foster children that are employed there. “They’re just badass baristas.”
The pair, who have been married for seventeen years, first became acquainted with one another when they were both attending Northern Arizona University and worked at the same after-school program.
This has been a common interest from the very beginning: providing assistance to children who are in the foster care system. It was after the birth of their first kid that they made the decision to become foster parents for the first time. They have been doing this for the last 15 years.
At the age of 14, Pima Johnson, one of their adult offspring, had already been placed in a total of six different foster group homes when she crossed paths with Ryan.
“He just randomly walked into my foster home and stated, ‘Hey, I’m Ryan,'” Johnson, who is now 25 years old, says in an interview with PEOPLE.
Almost immediately, they began conversing, and Ryan extended an invitation to her to join him, his wife, and their four young children for dinner. She freely acknowledges, “I fell in love with the kids much more quickly than I fell in love with them.”
The family decided to adopt Johnson when she was 16 years old.
In the course of the meal, Johnson claims that Ryan seated her at the table, which was an indication that he was planning “something.” His next question was, “How would you like to stay here?” she remembers him asking her. “And I was like, ‘Just for the summer?’” Rather than that, he said that he meant “forever.”
Johnson claims that the manner she has been accepted has enabled her to see how “blessed” she is and to genuinely “love my life.” Johnson is now married and has a baby for whom she is grateful.
In 2016, they made the decision to create their agency, which is called Ohana. Ohana is a Hawaiian word that means “family” and pays reference to Disney’s Lilo & Stitch. The family even refers to one of their boys as Stitch in a humorous manner since he is a youngster who can be very wild.
He continues by saying, “We didn’t think we could have any more children in our own home, but we wanted to be able to provide a home and an environment that is similar to that of a family for these children.” As of right now, they have around 45 residences spread out over the state of Arizona.
Their restaurant, Hānai, was named after Hawaiian culture, which signifies “informal adoption” or chosen family. This name was also influenced by the culture of Hawaii. On the website of the restaurant, it is said that “A person’s extended family, neighbor, or village is known as their Húnai and steps in the gap for a child who is in need.” It is precisely this need to intervene that has continued to exert pressure on the Senters.
In the foster care system, he continues, “We provide training for children.” We provide them with work plans, aid them in the development of social skills, teach them how to create eye contact, and teach them all the fundamentals. If you want them to be able to keep a job and perform a good job, then you should assist support them.
Additionally, according to the restaurant, a percentage of the revenues are donated to “foster youth who are interested in finding their forever homes.”
There was a shortage of baristas, and Mateja Andre was one of them. She was adopted when she was ten months old, but when her mother decided that her family was no longer “a good option,” Andre was thrown back into the foster care system when he was seventeen years old and placed with Ohana. People reports that the now-19-year-old has said that she was adopted.
Andre adds that when she interviewed to join the “brew crew,” they “didn’t know that I was from Ohana, which was pretty cool.” Soon after, she was offered a position at Hānai, and at that time, she was able to get employment there.
In the end, it transpired that it was more than simply a place of employment.
“It gave me somewhere where I felt like I was needed, somewhere where I could really just distract myself but also learn how to budget when you did make money, things like that, how to do that,” Andre continues to add. “So it was really helpful in that sense and really shaped how I do things now.”
She believes that the experiences she has had have had a significant role in determining the course that the remainder of her life would take.
“I have a daughter now, and I’m married, and we just bought our first house,” she explains further. “I am very excited.”
According to Ryan, Andre’s narrative demonstrates that the histories of foster children do not “define them.”
When it comes down to it, Sarah believes that the fact that they are able to witness the hope that they assist bring to children makes everything “very much worth it,” despite the fact that their line of work faces certain difficulties.
An further statement made by Ryan is that “it’s been a great adventure” that is in some way “more meaningful than I imagined.”
