Meet Enrique Camacho | Owner and Master Roaster

We had the good fortune of connecting with Enrique Camacho and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Enrique, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
I retired from the Army in Dec 2019, and I had determined that I wanted to try something completely different. A friend told me it was important to know what you want before launching; and if you didn’t know what you want at least know what you don’t want.

I knew I didn’t want to work for the government in a civilian capacity, and I didn’t want to work as a contractor doing what I had been doing for 30 years. That left me with a full range of options – nonprofit, new career path, volunteer, politics or…. start a business.

Starting a business appealed to my intellectual curiosity and desire to produce something tangible. So I launched Model Citizen Coffee Company and thus far the business journey has met every expectation – exhilarating, frustrating, challenging, satisfying, liberating, terrifying. Think I made a good choice.

What should our readers know about your business?
Model Citizen Coffee Company is a veteran owned, family run business that is grounded in faith and believes that a good cup of coffee is not just a wake up call; but an experience.

We started with a vision of being a company that engages our community in a positive way and inspires others to do more. In our third year of business we’ve gone from our garage, to a shared kitchen, and now in a café, with the hope of moving into our own facility next year.

We ran a successful Kickstarter Campaign at the height of the COVID pandemic, raising over $20K in start-up money. We’ve successly partnered with two local veteran organizations: Victory Service Dogs and 1350 Distillery. And we currently ship our coffee to over 35 States.

Small business is hard – period. It sounds romantic in theory, but it’s touch, dirty, and frustrating work. But when you’re doing something you love, the difficult stretches turn into these challenging problem solving moments that, when worked out are exceptionally gratifying.

The most important lessons we’ve learned are reinforced from years of military service.
1. Determination – to be successful there is no plan B; you have to be so determined that no matter what you’re going to succeed.
2. Adaptable – have plans, have vision, have ideas.. be flexible in them all. Opportunities and challenges present themselves everyday and if you’re too rigid you may be overwhelmed or crushed.
3. Humility – have confidence and be proud; but not to the point where you let arrogance impede new ideas or stubbornness limit your networks/groups.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
We’re in Woodland Park, CO and we love it here. Any friend of ours would know that we’re going hiking… lots and lots of hiking, biking, and sport. And they also know that best food in the area is prepared by my daughter and wife.

A week with us includes the following tourist spots, because let’s face it they’re pretty cool –
Day 1 B’fast Black Bear Diner
Garden of Gods, Air Force Academy, Ute Valley Park, Dinner at Flying W Ranch

Day 2 B’fast Sweet Elephant, Old Colorado City.
Manitou, Manitou Incline, Olympic Museum and homeless camps along Monument Creek, Monument Valley Park (Pickle ball Game!)

Day 3 B’fast West Side Café
Broadmoor Hotel, Section 16, 7 Bridges, Bear Creek, and Dinner at the Armadillo Ranch in Manitou

Day 4 B’fast at Hungry Bear Woodland Park
The Crags, Devils Playground… the Peak if they have gusto

Day 5 B’fast at Coffee Cottage in Woodland Park – Best Coffee in El Paso and Teller County.
Lovell Gultch, Pancake Rock, Cripple Creek Dinner at McGinty’s in Divide.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Too easy – First shout out to My Lord and Savior Jesus Christ who graciously blessed me and family with unimaginable good gifts, despite my stumbles and grumbles along the way.

My second shout out to my best friend, confidant, lover, counselor, and wife of 32 years: Tabitha Camacho. Also, the four awesome children we raised, who teach me something new every day.

A final shout out to the US Army. When you’ve served for over 30 years you get to hear “thank you for your service” quite often. it never get old and I hope it never does because it’s a wonderful sentiment for those who serve and are willing to be part of something greater than themselves. But for all that we give, the Army has given me so much more. It took a wandering young lad and made him a man. It afforded me opportunities to experience the world in a way that few ever do. It provided growth, leadership, education, and self discovery that laid a solid foundation for our next step.

Website: www.modelcitizencoffee.com

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