Gosport church hosts launch event for Harbour Coffee trailer which aims to spread community spirit in the town

A VIBRANT launch event drew in guests to a coffee trailer which will make its way around Gosport to spread community spirit.
By Belinda Dickins
Published 10th Jun 2021, 16:27 BST
Staff at the Harbour Coffee Van. Pictured: Levi Freed (22), Ed Haycock (29), Beth charman (29)Picture: Mike Cooter (090621)Staff at the Harbour Coffee Van. Pictured: Levi Freed (22), Ed Haycock (29), Beth charman (29)Picture: Mike Cooter (090621)
Staff at the Harbour Coffee Van. Pictured: Levi Freed (22), Ed Haycock (29), Beth charman (29)Picture: Mike Cooter (090621)

Live music, milkshakes and slices of pizza were the order of the day as Harbour Coffee launched on Wednesday evening in a pop-up event at St John’s Church in Forton Road.

Previously a coffee shop in Commercial Road run by Harbour Church, Harbour Coffee has headed over to Gosport to have permanent spots throughout the week as well as touring three schools at pick-up time to offer families free tea and filter coffee.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Ed Haycock, Harbour Coffee manager, said: ‘We were so excited to open the hatch and get serving on Wednesday night! It was amazing to see so many people come down to support us, Urban Slice the pizza trailer, and local musicians from St Vincent College.

Audience members at the Harbour Coffee Van Launch. Picture: Mike Cooter (090621)Audience members at the Harbour Coffee Van Launch. Picture: Mike Cooter (090621)
Audience members at the Harbour Coffee Van Launch. Picture: Mike Cooter (090621)

‘We loved getting to see St John's and Gosport come back to life. A massive thank you to everyone who came down and made it such an incredible evening.’

Read More
Dawn to dusk cycle challenge by Waterlooville man will raise funds for Portsmout...

Harbour Coffee’s vision is to build community and improve employability by offering training, all while serving up coffee and fun.

Quay West Studios and St Vincent College provided musical entertainment for visitors to the launch event.

Katie Louise Ball (27) performing at the event. Picture: Mike Cooter (090621)Katie Louise Ball (27) performing at the event. Picture: Mike Cooter (090621)
Katie Louise Ball (27) performing at the event. Picture: Mike Cooter (090621)
Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Guests could enjoy performances from local singers including Charlie Rose and Katie Louise Ball, while tucking into treats from the coffee van and pizza trailer.

SEE ALSO: Ultra marathon runner from Havant who dropped eight stone says ‘nothing is impossible’

Ray Driscoll, vicar of St John’s Forton, said: ‘We are so excited to hold our launch event for Harbour Coffee at St John's Church alongside local entrepreneurs and creatives from within this amazing town.

‘Our vision is for St John's to be a hub of creativity and community and this event is a picture of that future. We are excited to reopen for gigs, launch our community space and our debt advice centre in the coming months.’

Tom Preston (20), Ashley Diffey (18) and Tom Davies (17) performing at the event. Picture: Mike Cooter (090621)Tom Preston (20), Ashley Diffey (18) and Tom Davies (17) performing at the event. Picture: Mike Cooter (090621)
Tom Preston (20), Ashley Diffey (18) and Tom Davies (17) performing at the event. Picture: Mike Cooter (090621)

Harbour Coffee hopes to work with young people going forward, helping train them up as baristas and gain employment skills for future roles.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The team would also like to work with local businesses on their future events.

Plans are in progress for the next pop up event, and some more regular locations, so find @harbourcoffeeorg on Instagram to keep updated.

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

You can subscribe here for unlimited access to our online coverage, including Pompey, for 27p a day.

Related topics:GosportSt John's

Comment Guidelines

National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.