Andrews – On any given morning in Andrews, early birds and late risers are looking for the perfect pick me up. That’s why you’ll always find a line at a locally owned coffee shop known as Cpl. Ray’s Coffee. “I love this place. We love it. It just means the world to us,” said Jerry Bevel.
Jerry Bevel and his wife Lonna own this hotspot for caffeinated creations and Jerry is always amazed how many folks are willing to sit in the drive through. “People are lazy nowadays. They don’t want to get out and come in,” joked Jerry. “They’ll sit out there 15 cars long and they could walk in here and be gone before two cars move, but nope, sit out there.”
What’s even more amusing about Jerry is his opinion on the product that he dedicates so much work to. “Not big coffee drinker, but I love the coffee business,” said Jerry. “It’s extremely complicated. From the plantations to your cup, a lot of detail goes into it. It’s just a fascinating business to be part of.”
Jerry and his wife started this sought after coffee shop as a way to give back to the community that supported them during one of the most difficult times in their lives. “It’s just really good for us,” said Jerry. “It’s been good for us dealing with the loss of Ray, because, I mean, he’s in our life every day. We say his name every day, all day long, so it’s been really good for us.”
Cpl. Ray was their son and in 2007, he paid the ultimate price while defending our country in Iraq. Learning about the loss of his son is a memory Jerry will never forget. “Staff sergeant dressed in his class A’s rang our doorbell,” said Jerry. “It’s like eight o’clock at night and informed us that Ray had been killed, so it’s brutal. Just devastating. Just, I think it sends you into a state of shock at the moment. Probably what saves you from losing your mind, but there’s, I mean, just a punch to the gut like you’ve never experienced in your life.”
Ray was sent back home to Texas and when his casket arrived, another unforgettable moment occurred in the Bevel’s lives. “It was a Saturday night that we were notified and the next Friday is when we brought him home and he landed at Midland International down there,” said Jerry. “We brought him all the way home and the streets were lined all the way home. I mean, it’s just mind-blowing. I mean, it just made you feel like he didn’t die for nothing.”
Ray can be found in every corner of the coffee shop including a mural done by a local artist to honor the fallen hero. “I don’t ever look at it,” said Jerry. “It hits too close to home. She did a great job. Looks just like him so I don’t look at it. There’s so many things that have been given to us over the years that are hanging on the walls that have just a real personal connection, meaning to them and just… It’s a big part of our lives and probably keeps us from going crazy.”
The coffee shop is also a big part of the lives and many who served. No matter what branch of service, for those who have experienced what war is, Corporal Ray’s provides them with a respite. “I’m not a veteran, so I don’t understand, but this is like… I mean, it’s like hallowed ground to them,” said Jerry. “I mean, it’s a place where they come and they tell me it takes all the bad feelings away. I mean, it just… It’s comforting.”
It’s also Jerry on Lonna’s place of respite. Having Ray surround them every day while providing the community a gathering place that warms hearts, souls, and those who served is what they feel they need to be doing in memory of their son. A loss most of us will never comprehend.
“You have two options and I’ve seen people do both,” said Jerry. “One is, you can let it destroy your life because it will do it. It’s that bad a situation. It will destroy your life if you let it. Or the second choice is what your child would’ve wanted, was for you to keep living. Where everybody makes a mistake is they tried to get their life back the way it was, and that’s gone and it’s gone forever. You have to find a new normal, find a normal that you can live with and live that normal and just live that life. Our life’s not the same. I mean, granted, we got coffee shops in his name and everything, but there’s still a hole in our life where he’s gone. He’s missing. But we’ve found a new normal that we can live with and that includes living with the hole in our heart that we have for him.”
The Bevels know that they’re carrying on the way their son would have wanted, and are comforted by the knowledge that Ray can look down and take pride in what his parents have built. “We live every day just knowing that’s what he wants us to do,” said Jerry. “They don’t want you to destroy your life over them, but it’s easy to do. He’s probably looking down in heaven and my mom and dad are up there now. He’s probably looking down and elbowing them, saying, ‘That’s me down there.’”