Visitors to Toomer’s Coffee Roastersā¢ original coffee shop in Auburn were often amused to find out our name really is Toomer.Ā However let me clear the air: we are “kissin-cousins” only to the Auburn Toomers.
However, my great-great-great Grandfather, Benjamin Toomer and two of his brothers, arrived as founding fathers of another famous town, Hilton Head, SC in the 1700’s.Ā I know all of this because my father, Fred Toomer,Ā helped write a book on the Toomer family history.
Early Years and Missionary Work
Trish and Sandy Toomer have been happily married for over 46 years and have two grown children.Ā Sandy is a native of Vestavia Hills, Alabama and Trish is from Hurricane, West Virginia.
From 1990-93 we were in training at Moody Aviation (a part of Moody Bible Institute) and after graduation, joined Mission Aviation Fellowship in 1993 and served as missionaries to the South American country of Ecuador.
Sandy was a missionary pilot with MAFĀ and flew [as a commercial pilot] nearly 3,000 hours serving missionaries and indigenous tribes of the Amazon rainforest while Trish provided hospitality for visitors to the Shell Ecuador base.Ā In that role as Hospitality Coordinator for MAF’s base in Shell, she provided a home away from home for hundreds of visitors and workers from churches worldwide each year and was the link and “shopper” for missionaries living in the jungle.Ā Harrison and Sarah attendedĀ Nate Saint Memorial SchoolĀ in Shell.
Since that time, in addition to Trish & Sandy’s joint venture, Toomer’s Coffee Companyā¢, Sandy also has his hands in digital branding and an online marketing developmentĀ company, Flying Tigers Media.
Public Service
In 2014 I (Sandy) was asked to run for the Alabama State Legislature by a group of concerned local businessmen. It was a close race against a 16 year incumbent and the Speaker of the Alabama House of Representatives, with him winning by only a few hundred votes.Ā
Upon reflection, I saw it as just one more exciting chapter in an exciting life and an excellent opportunity to see real politics up close and personal.Ā
Today
We first opened Toomer’s Coffee Roastersā¢ in downtown Opelika, a short hop from Auburn, in 2004.Ā Ā However, since so many of our regular coffee-bean-buying customers were from Auburn, they kept after us to move the shop over to Auburn.
So, in August of 2005 we opened our doors in the University Village shopping center on South College Avenue, located right behind Loco’s. Since that time we have sold our retail shop interests
The Future
As of July 2013 we left the retail side of Toomer’s Coffee Roasters to new owners to focus our entire efforts on building and growing our wholesale business regionally and nationally which includes BOTH Toomer’s Coffee Roastersā¢ and Coffee 4 Missionsā¢.
But now in 2019, having purchased our own property for the roastery we find we have ample space to expand and a great location to go back into the retail coffee shop world.Ā
So be looking for Toomer’s Coffee Shop to re-open in a new form sometime in the Fall of 2019!