Sacred Space

If you've ever been in Sacred Grounds late on a Monday morning, June probably knows your name. And what you do for a living. If you come in here two Mondays in a row, she'll get the rest of your life history out of you. And tell you hers.

"I like to know names," June said to me the first time we met.

June and her cohort of Monday morning coffee buddies are mostly women, but an occasional man is allowed to sit with them as long as he stays quiet. They aren't the only ones, however, to show up at Sacred Grounds. People from all over San Pedro, and not just the downtown area, find their way to this 6th Street coffeehouse between Pacific and Mesa.

The owner of Sacred Grounds, Dave Lynch, says people don't really come for the coffee. It's all about community. The coffeehouse is a gathering place, he says. In addition to June's group, people come in for business meetings, casual conversation, surfing the Net, live entertainment, or simply to read a newspaper and--gasp--drink coffee.

Raul Roman has probably made more coffee over the last eight years than any other employee of Sacred Grounds. He is usually found standing at the register wearing his Texas Rangers cap (we'll forgive him), ready to take your order. He prides himself on making anything the customer wants, but his personal favorite is the double mocha. Roman has come to know the regulars well, but also appreciates that the staff works well as a team.

Until about two months ago, the Sacred Grounds team was located less than one block to the east. Rapidly rising rent forced Lynch to look elsewhere. He didn't get far. The distance in atmosphere, though, between the old and new Sacred Grounds is considerable. The old site, according to Lynch, was more "beatnik and bohemian." The new looks more like what people expect of a coffeehouse. It is lighter and airier, and even the selections in the art gallery are new. The staff and eclectic mix of used tables and chairs from the old site, however, were allowed to move up the street.

But then, Sacred Grounds was never about the coffee in the cups, the art on the walls or the tables on the floor. It has always been about the people who gather inside. If you'd like to see exactly who comes to take their coffee here, and it just happens to be Monday morning, bring your resume. It will make June's job a lot easier.