Fallon athlete pays it forward to businesses with mobile coffee cafe

FALLON, Nev. — It was just a few months ago when the Fallon community watched local resident Emmily Butz compete against CrossFit athletes from across the country on season 5 of the popular CMT reality show Steve Austin’s Broken Skull Challenge.

Although she fell short of winning the challenge, Butz still made her dream come true when she returned home to Fallon: to open up her shiny, retro mobile cafe business, Lyft Coffee.

Only a month in business, Butz also is keeping busy with her new program for the community: Lyft It Forward.

“A local business contacted me about starting a pay-it-forward sort of program with my coffee,” Butz said. “I loved the idea, so I ran with it.”

The way it works is anybody within the Fallon community can call Butz at Lyft Coffee and choose a business to make an act of kindness — with free coffee.

The person who calls and refers a business pays Lyft Coffee with cash or credit to charge, and then sets a date and time for delivery for Butz to deliver.

To launch the program, Butz teamed up with the local business that inspired her, Red Door Salon, located on West Williams Avenue. They made their first stop with the program at Financial Horizons, on Reno Highway, in March.

Two other local businesses, Churchill County Credit Union and Chandler and Coleman Salon, also contributed to the program.

Butz said she plans to donate 20 percent of profits and tips to animal shelters in need once a month, as eventually, she wants to open her own animal rescue house.

“I kind of coin the term ‘spread the good,’” she said. “Contribute to other people’s happiness.”

Since opening March 6, Butz serves coffee seven days a week from the mobile shop to local business offices, at sports and events, and to one school per day.

She even keeps her coffee beans regional, from Old World Coffee, a Reno-based company.

But people don’t have to find her at a school or event to get their fix of caffeine; Lyft Coffee’s scheduled stops are available through an app called Roaming Hunger.