Serving tasty coffee beverages lakeside, Tyee Coffee Company of Coolin, Idaho is a favorite for both locals and tourists to Priest Lake. In fact, the shop – which is named after a steamboat that served the lake in the early 1900’s – is the only lakeside café in a nearly 100-mile radius.

“The pandemic has been really hard on the customer service industry,” says Tyee owner, Hunter Storro. “Customers are fearful about interaction with employees, and we do the best we can to meet them where they were at during this challenging time.”

Yet serving customers is what Storro loves to do, and he is not standing still to help his community. Excited to partner with Columbia Bank’s Pass It On Project, Tyee Coffee Company is providing free coffee to EMTs and Columbia Bank is picking up the tab. “We are passing it on by giving free beverages to local EMTs,” he says. “They do an amazing job keeping people safe, and with Columbia’s partnership, we will help brighten their day with a great cup of coffee.”