Caitlin is a Brighton resident and cafe owner, passionate about fostering community through hospitality, fun and authenticity. She moved from California in 2005 to attend Northeastern University, eventually pursuing a career in the catering and events sphere. Recognizing her desire to see more purpose and overlap between her "work" and "personal" activities, Caitlin spent a season working under a local cafe owner, learning all aspects of the business, which eventually positioned her to seize the opportunity to buy Cafenation, a Brighton cafe and coffee roastery, in the summer of 2020.

True to her passion for keeping community and people central to her work, Caitlin drew from her network of friends and other local business connections to bring the dream of purchasing and expanding Cafenation to life. She received an outpouring of support from friends and neighbors, many of whom gave generously of their financial and physical resources, confirming the need and desire for a community-oriented space where customers could feel a sense of ownership and belonging. 

In 2021, Brighton Main Streets awarded Cafenation their "Small Business of the Year" award, reinforcing the importance of its place in the neighborhood and the potential for positive impact. Even prior to becoming a small business owner in the community, Caitlin has been invested in the Brighton neighborhood for over 18 years, as a regular attending member of a local church. Her faith has largely inspired her commitment to establishing rhythms as both a resident and business owner that keep her locally focused, constantly learning and seeking to understand how to be a better neighbor and community member.

Having recently brought on co-owners to help facilitate growth of the business, Caitlin hopes to continue to serve Brighton through her business by maintaining the commitment to keep people at the center of day-to-day operations. From staff to customers, and from vendor relationships to others' use of the space for their own creative expressions, her team strives to make decisions that place more value on people than efficiency or profitability, believing that investing in individuals ultimately strengthens their sense of belonging and purpose as part of a strong community. While the risk to purchase a business in the midst of the COVID pandemic seemed ambitious, Caitlin has had the privilege of witnessing how a simple commitment to creating a warm, inviting space has brought comfort, hope and relationship to people from all different backgrounds.

Despite having faced plenty of challenging business decisions along the way, she has maintained a vision to use her passion for hospitality as a vehicle for creating meaningful connections and allowing the strengths and talents of others to be mutually celebrated through all facets of the business. Caitlin hopes that as Cafenation grows, her ability to connect with and support members of her own community will have ripple effects for communities beyond Brighton, inspiring others to use their own passions to bring strength, hope and restoration into their own spheres of influence.