Brewing community for generations of Panthers
Brewing community for generations of Panthers
Thirty-plus years ago, Dawn Wilson might not have been able to imagine that a move from Ohio to Cedar Falls, Iowa, would allow her to help build one of downtown's most recognizable gathering places. What began as a career opportunity at UNI ultimately led the Wilson family to become deeply woven into the fabric of the Cedar Valley community.
Wilson is the owner of the iconic espresso bar Cup of Joe in downtown Cedar Falls. She’s been with the business for nearly its entire existence.
“Who knew this would be my calling?” she said. “I always think to myself, ‘We’re not in the service industry. We’re in the hospitality industry.’ And I love it!”
With the university being just a few minutes away from her shop, Wilson has seen the importance of UNI firsthand. For decades, she has watched students, faculty, staff and alumni flow through her doors, making Cup of Joe an informal extension of the UNI experience for countless Panthers.
None of it would have been possible had her husband, Aaron, not gotten a job as an art professor at the University of Northern Iowa.
“UNI is such a big part of my everyday life,” said Wilson. “I’m a little biased on the professors, but I also know in other departments, students are getting a great education, and I think others need to be reminded of that. There’s a lot of wonderful things at UNI. It’s a great school for a lot of students who don’t want to go to a massive college but still want a beautiful campus with lots of wonderful opportunities and great professors.”
Cup of Joe has long been such an important part of the Cedar Valley community — and by extension UNI — that during his interview process back in 1995, Aaron Wilson was taken there by his future colleagues. Even then, the brand-new coffee shop served as a gathering place where campus and community naturally came together for coffee and conversation. Aaron excitedly told his wife about this local espresso bar with 1950s flair.
“He said, ‘You gotta check out this coffee shop, I think you'll really like it.”
Wilson had already garnered a resume full of hospitality and restaurant experience back in Ohio. She applied for a barista position at Cup of Joe under the shop’s founder Ann Eastman, a 1993 UNI graduate. In six months time, Wilson had become a manager, and the rest is history. From its founding to its current ownership, the story of the business has remained closely tied to UNI and the people who call it home.
“I just love being with the people,” she said. “I love being with the employees. I love coming to work. So when Ann was thinking about selling the business, I asked if she would consider me buying it. I had my first restaurant when I was 19, so it felt like a natural fit.”
Wilson has loved building a space that means so much to so many people in the Cedar Valley as well as out-of-town visitors.
“I think small businesses are at the heart of the community because they bring individuality to the community,” she said. “They bring a sense of variety. They ensure everything isn’t cookie cutter. Each small business brings a little bit of their own spice of life.”
Looking back, Wilson sees her own story as an example of the lasting relationship between UNI and Cedar Falls. A job opportunity at the university brought her family to Iowa, and the connections she built through UNI students, faculty, staff and alumni helped shape both her business and her sense of community.
“This is a place where everyone is comfortable,” she said. “This is a safe place for a lot of people. I take that very seriously and do my best to make everyone feel welcome.”
