By Amy Pollock
MILLISLE Main Street is now without a coffee shop following the closure of a community interest café last week.Non-profit café, CuppAbility, existed to support people living with disabilities by giving them the opportunity to contribute to society and build confidence and skills in a ‘safe haven’ setting.
However, on Wednesday of last week, owner Jacqueline Adeoye closed up shop for the last time due to rising costs, leaving Millisle village without a central coffee shop.
CuppAbility opened in August 2024 after Jacqueline lost her job when the Ability Café at Ballycopeland Windmill heritage site closed in March 2024 due to a ‘funding shortfall’.
“When I lost that job, I could feel myself getting very depressed, until someone said to me ‘why don’t you open your own café?’,” said Jacqueline.
“I honestly didn’t think I’d be able to do it, but here I am, a year later, and that is a big achievement for me just to know that I’m able to do something when I set my mind to it.”
She said her biggest motivation for opening the café was to give people living with disabilities a chance to enhance their employability and social skills.
“I wanted to do it so people that couldn’t get jobs elsewhere were able to work here, just to give them a chance. I wanted to prove to people that just because they have disabilities, it doesn’t mean they can’t work.
“The staff have been absolutely amazing here, and those that know the staff have been so welcoming and overjoyed with how they get treated by the staff when they come here,” she said.
Jacqueline said with the café now closed, she is concerned about the futures of her volunteers and customers.
“I’m gutted because I don’t know what my staff are going to do now. I worry that they won’t find another job anywhere else and my heart is breaking for them.
“My regulars are all heartbroken too because we’re not just a regular café. We like to have a bit of craic and banter with the customers that come in and chat to them – and see listening to all their stories – some people are actually so amazing and you don’t realise it until you actually sit down with them.”
Mandy McCully, who supports the café as supervisor, echoed Jacqueline’s concerns, saying her heart goes out to the volunteers and customers.
“One of the volunteers is non-verbal and one is deaf and they really enjoy it here – I just feel for them because they may struggle to find opportunities like this,” she said.
“There’s also quite a lot of regulars that come in every day and they depend on here because there’s nothing in Millisle for them.
“And I feel sorry for Jacqueline, she’s put her heart and soul into this, and now she has to give it all up.”
Customer Margaret Hammond said with CuppAbility no longer open, ‘the week will now be long’ without her favourite coffee spot and community hub.
“We will miss having somewhere to go and the great craic you get from the staff and customers. The week will be a lot longer now without it,” she said.
To close out the café’s last week, Jacqueline hosted a coffee morning last Monday to raise funds for Macmillan cancer charity in support of one of her loyal customers, as well as a ‘thank you’ party for the CuppAbility community last Wednesday.
“One of my customers has terminal cancer, and she wanted to do a coffee morning for Macmillan because they supported her so much through her cancer treatment, so we done a tombola and it brought in a lot of money which was great.”
In total, CuppAbility raised £1,267 for Macmillan through the coffee morning and collections during their final week of trading, officially marking the end of an era for the much-loved community café.
