Brewing Purpose: Building a Life-Giving Space from the Ground Up

In this episode of Leadership Tea, Shelby and Belinda sit down with Kahana Samms, founder of Good Spirit Cafe, to discuss reinvention, entrepreneurship, wellness, and building community after uncertainty.

After years working in federal IT and cybersecurity, Kahana found herself navigating furloughs, layoffs, and major life transitions, prompting her to rethink stability, purpose, and what it truly means to build a meaningful life. 

Together, they discuss:

• Entrepreneurship and sacrifice
• Building a “third space” for healing and connection
• The emotional realities of starting over
• Leadership, energy, and authenticity
• Creativity as a pathway to purpose
• Why community-centered spaces matter now more than ever

This conversation is grounding, inspiring, and honest, especially for anyone navigating transition or building something from the heart.

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If you're interested, email us directly at hello@stirringsuccess.com, and we'll be in touch.

Transcript

Welcome And Meet Kahana Sands

SPEAKER_03 0:01

Welcome to the Leadership Tea Podcast, where leadership, culture, and clarity meet conversation. I'm Shelby Smith Wilson, and I'm joined by my amazing co-host, Belinda Jackson Ferrier. And today we are so thrilled to have as our special guest Kahana Sands, who is the owner and founder of the Good Spirit Cafe, which is located in the Alexandria Carlisle neighborhood on Eisenhower Avenue. A self-described community builder at heart, Kahana spent her career in federal IT and cybersecurity before a furlough prompted her to rethink her purpose and passion. Her formative years were spent as a foreign service and military brat, but she used that experience to build a space that is grounded in clean living, mental wellness, and a belief that healing is a sacred work that is best done in community. Beyond offering special coffees and herbal teas, fresh juices and light bites, Good Spirit Cafe is genuinely a space that Kahana has spent intentionally building for the community. She has a rotating calendar of various events that are coming up during the summer, which you can find more information about in our show notes. But what I think comes through in our chat with Kahana is her genuine passion for building community and creating space for people to be seen, for people to feel safe. She's built a wonderful resource here in Alexandria. And we have a really rich conversation about her personal pivot, her transition into an entrepreneur, just some of the lessons that she has learned on her journey of really living in her purpose. So grab your cup of tea, your cup of coffee. I know you're gonna get a lot out of this episode. Let's go ahead and get into it.

Inside Good Spirit Cafe

SPEAKER_00 2:06

Kahana, thank you so much for joining us. We're so excited to be here at Good Spirit Cafe. Oh, thank you. I'm happy you guys are here. Thank you. We've been really excited about this, and it's just such a beautiful space. Um, I thought I would start by asking uh a little bit about your background. And I think our listeners, many of whom work in global affairs and international relations, be really surprised to learn that your parents were diplomats. Yeah. And um, we're just curious. What are some of the places that you've lived and how did that experience shape

Growing Up Across Cultures

SPEAKER_00 2:37

you?

SPEAKER_04 2:37

Um actually, my mother started off in the Navy. So I went to elementary school in Rhoda, Spain at DGF Elementary. Shout out to DGF Elementary. I know they're still there, but that was um my first experience being overseas. Um and while I was living in Spain, while we were living in Rhoda, we got to do a lot of traveling while we were over there. So I always tell people there was a time, I think it was like 1989, where we attended the grand opening of the McDonald's in Madrid. And that was like a big deal. I was like, oh, we drove like six hours to get to the McDonald's in Madrid. So um we used to travel to Madrid, we used to go to um Sevilla, Cádiz, all these um Spanish towns and cities where I was just like immersed into the culture, into the people. Um, I learned how to do flamingo dancing when I was really young. Um, and so I went to the running of the bulls. Um, and so when I look back at like those VHS tapes from like the late 80s and 90s, I'm like, oh my God, like this is crazy. Um, but my mother was very um avid on me seeing the world from at a young age. My mother grew up in Detroit, Michigan. Buffalo projects in Detroit, Michigan. Um, she was a baby out of 13 kids, and she joined the military, and we were off to the races. There was a time where we did a 30-day year rail trip around Europe. So we rode the train for 30 days, and we went to, I went to Switzerland, we went to Paris, we went to Italy, we went to Germany, we went to all these different places. I saw the lot, the Leaning Tower of Pisa, the Eiffel Tower, um, the Coliseum, all these important landmarks on the globe at a very young age. And then from there, um, I went off to college and she joined the State Department. And then from there, she was in Honduras, she was in um South Africa. So I used to go to South Africa a lot. Um, and like just so many places. It was uh, it's just it's been crazy when I think back on it now. Like I saw a lot of the world before I hit 16 years old. It was crazy.

SPEAKER_03 4:52

Yeah, but I didn't realize that we had Spain in common. That was my last overseas. Really? Oh my God, I love Spain. They got the best food they and the siesta. Okay. That part, that part, and the food for sure. My kids, like, even to this day, they talk about how fresh the food was and the produce and the differences and the taste. We never had shrimp until you were in Spain.

SPEAKER_01 5:18

Exactly.

SPEAKER_03 5:18

Exactly. So you've lived a full life and you've seen a lot of different cultures, you've visited a lot of different places, and service is a component of your life that's real. Yeah. Your mom having served in the military and at the State Department.

The Furlough That Changed Everything

SPEAKER_03 5:35

So I was wondering if you could take us back to the moment when the furlough hit. Having this service background from your mom, and then you becoming a public servant yourself. Yeah. And kind of having this thought that government was a secure, safe type of profession just based on your experience. I'm wondering, furlough hit, what did that moment change or clarify for you?

SPEAKER_04 6:01

That it was no longer a safe option. So many of us have dedicated so much time to the federal government and public service, civil service. Um, and we've always been taught that this is one thing that's stable. This is one thing that is protected from layoffs. This is something where you're gonna be able to constantly grow. This is where you're gonna be able to constantly learn. And so when the furlough hit, to be honest, I wasn't all that surprised. I was expecting that we were gonna be under the radar. Um, but I was definitely just like devastated and afraid. And my whole thing was that I'm not going out there and compete with 300,000 federal workers in the DMB area. Like that's just nerve-wracking in itself. So I was um just adamant, like, you know, I had to do something else. I have to pivot. There has to be something else that I can do um to bring my skills. And so I just, I really was just, I was in a lot of deep thought about using my natural talents, using my creative skills, using my own personal background and things that I've learned from family and friends.

SPEAKER_00 7:19

So, God, your pivot is ongoing and you're moving towards your overall goals right now. Yeah. And it feels like it's a deeply personal journey for you. Yeah.

Why Wellness Became The Mission

SPEAKER_00 7:30

And so I'm just wondering, um what made you decide that coming out of your career in government that wellness was the right space for you to move into?

SPEAKER_04 7:41

Um, first of all, I'm still in government. So I was furloughed, then unfurlowed, and then laid off, and then I laid off again. So it happened twice. And so now they're talking about it again. And so, you know, when I got this space, I wasn't a hundred percent sure what it was gonna be. Um, I used to walk past this store all the time and it was closed. And at first I thought, I'll open a convenience store. And I was like, no, that's not it. You know, Wegman's is right there, CVS is right there, 7-Eleven, like they can people in this neighborhood can get. And so I started to think about the things that I would need, things that I wanted during my own personal transition because these last couple of years have just been a transition for me. My son is grown now, he moved out of the house. Um, me and my husband, we were at a point where we were separated. Um, the furlough happened. So it was just like a lot of change that was going on. Um, and so I wanted to create a space that would have been a place where I think I could have found some solace at the time that I was going through my transition. And I wanted to incorporate all of the elements of wellness. So not just, you know, having vegan food or, you know, sugar-free food or just a space for community, but actually include inclusive of all of those components that make you feel good. Um, and so that was really, and I'm good spirit is a brand that I was working on before the furlough. So I always had t-shirts, I had hats, I had mugs and different ideas that were creative outlets for me to be able to express what I thought the meaning of Good Spirit was. And so I realized, okay, this administration is getting ready to come into office. And I was like, let me throw up a couple websites. And so I was on Shopify, building Shopify stores, and I think within like three weeks, people were like, oh my God, you just opened up a whole store in like a very short amount of time. And I'm like, I'm preparing for what's coming. There is a snowball coming this way. Um, and so that kind of kicked out, started. And so then we got the, I got the space, and I was going back and forth about what it was gonna be, and something just said, this is a perfect opportunity to put good spirit right on top of this building. Um, so it actually just kind of came together naturally. Um, and it's really all been spirit-led. A lot of people are fascinated with the space and what I'm trying to build here, but it has not been a master plan. It's really been me just going inside myself, talking to spirit and being, what do I need to do? How am I going to be able to maintain? How am I going to be able to fall into my purpose, use my own creative skills, um, and then also give back because I'm a firm believer that, you know, the more your hands are open, the more you receive. And so I tried to really lead by that philosophy and giving, and in that return, I get my return as well.

Volunteer Roots And Open Hands

SPEAKER_04 10:47

So my mother married a man in 1991. His name was Michael, and I spent a lot of time with his family down in New Orleans and Oakland, California. And I went to middle school there for about a year. And his mother owned a soup kitchen in Oakland. So every day after school, I was at a soup kitchen sorting through clothes, cooking food. I knew all the homeless people in the neighborhood. And so I didn't realize until opening this space how much that had a big impact on me. And my mom was always a farm believer. She's always encouraged us to uh volunteer, um, be a source of your community, um, and just give back to the community, give back to the people who give to you in some capacity or shape. So that's kind of how we got here.

SPEAKER_03 11:48

I love what you said about having open hands so that you can receive and the spirit of volunteerism and the richness of your upbringing and and volunteering in soup kitchens and seeing what it's like to be homeless. I think that's a perspective that a lot of people just don't have. And I think it's really it's beautiful that you've taken all of that and poured it into your own thing. I mean, it's more than a shop, it's really a place for community. Yeah. And you're really building something special. And

Entrepreneurship And Real Sacrifice

SPEAKER_03 12:26

I'm wondering as you started this journey of entrepreneurship and funding yourself and being a businesswoman, what did that experience teach you about resilience and asking for help and all the stuff that goes into running your own sacrifice?

SPEAKER_04 12:45

Um, and I didn't, I think the number one thing that I've learned is I didn't expect how much it would change me. Um it would change me on my perspective on things. I didn't realize how much it would make me take a look at who has access to me, to my resources, to my time, to my energy. Um, and just how hard you have to work, how hard you have to believe in your own goals and your own vision. You have to be a visionary, you have to be able to see it before it's actually into the physical. And the sacrifice, the sacrifice, nobody knows that I've been eating eggs and bacon for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. But for the last six months, I don't really think it's a seven dollar meal, but also it takes 10 minutes to cook, right? It's quick and easy, right? It's quick and easy. People think I'm I'm dead serious. Like I it it the amount of time I have been in this place at three o'clock in the morning, late night, walking across the street to my apartment, like looking over my back, not for like chillers and robbers, but for like foxes and raccoons. Those are the things that I've been afraid of. You know what I've heard? But I've spent a lot of time in here. And another thing I didn't expect is how many beautiful people that I was gonna that was gonna walk through that door and the people who who were gonna help me really build this place. I've had so many people donate furniture, donate time, donate um resources. Um, I've met some of the most kindest people who have just supported me, saw what I was trying to build. I didn't expect that. That part I didn't expect. I didn't know that it was going to be just such a harrowing process. People always say entrepreneurship is hard. Like you have to be built for it. Like it is hard. I don't even think hard is the word for it. I don't really think hard. There needs to be another word for because it's not. I mean, like, it's just it's it's been a long row. If you look at some of the photos from um, like when I first got started here, I was not doing my hair. Like I'm like, I'm not, I'm not, I'm not, I have not taken care of myself. Like I'm just now, as these places starting to stabilize, I'm able to now start taking care of myself. Like I can do my hair, I can put on a little bit of makeup, I can put on real clothes. I'm not wearing my little jumper suit that I've been famous for my Rosa Park sprays. Like, so it's been a it's been a lot of sacrifice, and I make light of it, but it has definitely been a long journey. So it's definitely something I'm proud of, and I'm so happy um about the people that I've met and the people that I've poured into this place and people who have taken such an interest um in this cafe. So it's definitely a blessing.

SPEAKER_00 15:45

It feels like this is becoming a third space between home and work. Yeah. And so, what ideally does that look like for you in practice? What does that mean?

SPEAKER_04 15:56

Um, it really just looks like being in community. Um, it looks like giving people, especially in this Eisenhower neighborhood, um, especially for our community, a place where they can go and feel seen and feel comfortable, um, to be able to express themselves, to be able to just be who they are. Um, we can listen to our own music. You know, you can sing along. You don't feel, it doesn't feel awkward. It doesn't feel like you're out of place. Um, it feels like this is where you belong. And so, and I think a lot of people come through here and they'll be like, yeah, this is, I'm so happy that this space is here. So, I mean, not only is this a place where you can come and you can work and you can come and get food and drinks, and you can have workshops and and gatherings and stuff like that. It's really for the people who are getting off the metro after a long day and they're not ready to go home, but and they just want to come in and just find somebody to talk to. A lot of people come in here, they come in here by themselves and they sit by themselves, and you can just see like the the exhale moment. You can really get everything. You can see the shoulders drop, you see the head go back, and you know, say this is the vibe, that's what I need today. And I think that's something new for a lot of us because a lot of places you go, um you can't, you really can't get that, you know. Yeah. Yeah.

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SPEAKER_03 17:23

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Using Cybersecurity To Run A Cafe

SPEAKER_03 18:12

on what you've described and what we feel that this real sense of community and warmth, I think a lot of people would be surprised to know that your background, your professional background, is IT and cybersecurity. Like I would have never guessed that based on the little bit that I know about you and getting to know you. And so I'm curious, like, how does your systems and analytic background shape how you run Good Spirit Cafe?

SPEAKER_04 18:40

Oh, yeah. Um, definitely from making sure it's taught me to do my due diligence. And cybersecurity, due diligence is a big word. You have to do your part to make sure that the safeguards are in place, they are performing as expected, they are operating as needed. And I spent a lot of time thinking about the operation of this cafe, the flow of it. When people come in, when they come in, they order how the bar is set up behind the components, the actual physical components of like the lounge area, the workshop area, um, in as far as like financial, making sure the requirements are met, making sure that what is needed to keep this space running is taken care of first. Um, so I definitely take a lot of things that I've learned from my background in IT. And that's been 25 years in information technology. And 16 of those years were um focused on cyber. And um a lot of it is just making sure things are operating the way they're supposed to, making sure identifying where the vulnerabilities are, you know, what is the pain points here that could bring this to its knees, where do we need improvements at? It's always really just kind of stepping back and figuring out where can we tighten this up for a more secure or a better experience or a better financially responsible way to be able to conduct something and not really take away from the experience or, you know, something like that.

Leadership As Energy And Example

SPEAKER_00 20:19

So you know, often as we think about leading organizations, we think about leading people or making big decisions. But how has this journey into entrepreneurship changed and shaped your definition of leadership?

SPEAKER_04 20:34

I realize that a big part of leadership is being an example. Really, it's an old, I think it's called catty shag when you say you have to be the ball, be the ball. And so I have to be good spirit. You know, I'm always like checking myself. Yesterday was a very hectic day in here on a Sunday. We hadn't been here. And so some days I just like, I have to go, I gotta take a time out because I don't even feel like my energy is right. I don't want to spread that around here. And so it's like those moments, like being able to check myself and making sure that I'm giving what I want back and I'm behaving and operating and managing this place in the way that I want it, that I want to manage. I want to be able to absolutely attract what I am. I have a, I don't allow alcohol in here for a number of reasons. But I guess for the most important part of it is I just don't feel like it's a part of wellness. And that doesn't mean I that I don't drink. And I, I mean, but I don't drink, I drink occasionally. Um, but a lot of people always ask me, like, oh, can we bring alcohol? You know, can we have parties? And I'm like, no, that's not a part of wellness. That's not something that's tied to um the overall wellness of what's good for your spirit, for your body. Um, so it's just things like that. It's really about really being an example, leading by example. I think people. Will do as they see you do. They will treat you as you treat yourself. And so I always have that in the front of my mind.

The Real Costs And Social Buzz

SPEAKER_03 22:09

Yeah. You talked about being the ball and checking yourself and making sure your energy is right. I'm wondering what has been the most rewarding part of this journey and what has cost you more than what you initially anticipated. Oh. I think the most rewarding part is the people.

SPEAKER_04 22:31

And just seeing people coming here and enjoy this space, like that's that's what really, really makes me like, yeah, like this is this is what it's all about, creating that third space for people. Um so I think that's but one of I guess one of the things that cost me more than I expected is the cost. The cost and you know how much how much of my time it was gonna take. I remember when I was building this space and my mother had come up here for a couple of months, and you know, we would sit in my apartment and sit around a round table and kind of plan things out. She was like, Honey, you can be the staff. I was like, No, I'm not, mom. I'm serving coffee. Like, no, I'm not. I'm not, I'm totally not gonna need to stab out. Like, I didn't do this, it's no problem. And she's like, we're gonna need to need some help. And I did not, I was like, I was like, oh, snap. Like when I started, you know, when I started, when I started seeing like the traction on social media, I knew that were gonna be it was a possibility there could be buzz on social media, but when I started seeing like the buzz coming here from just off of social media, that's when I was like, okay, wow, like this is a lot. Um, and I mean, you know, 80% of the people who come through that door, it's like, I saw you on Instagram, I saw you on TikTok, and then that's how they found you. That's all you want.

SPEAKER_00 23:50

I saw you on TikTok, and I was like, that's just down the street. I'm gonna go there now. Right. I like literally came like the next day.

SPEAKER_04 23:57

Yeah, and it's been a lot of that. And a lot of people when they say they'll see the video and they'll be like, Alexandra, Alexandra, where? Where is in Howard Avenue? It's just like so yeah, yeah, you know, I didn't that's the kind of stuff like I was like, oh my god, I didn't realize I didn't know that. So that was yeah, yeah, it's like an unexpected blessing. Yeah, right. It's definitely an unexpected blessing. It really was. Yeah.

Advice For Taking The Leap

SPEAKER_00 24:22

For our listeners who were at home kind of sitting on a dream that they haven't moved on yet, what would you tell someone about taking that big leap?

SPEAKER_04 24:34

Um, I would say go for it. I would say that the old saying goes, if you build it, they will come. If you build it, they really will come. Um, I would say that be a visionary, believing your own dreams, build what you see, what you feel in your spirit. Um, lean into your purpose, lean into those God-given skills that you've been provided with. They're there for a reason. I said that on another video, that they're definitely there for a reason. So use them, use those creative. I think people really underestimate the power of creativity and how important it is for your mental health, um, just to be able to transmute that energy that's inside of you and create something beautiful. And then also how you it helps you, it's really tied to your purpose and how you can lean into that. And once you are sure of that and you can build from that, people will come, they will seek you out because that's just who you are at your core. And it's really about you know, you becoming your authentic self. And another thing I would say is a lot of times when I was in here on the beginning stages, and I would think, like, oh my God, this refrigerator is $5,000. Where is this where is this money coming from? Like, where is this coming from? And I just heard the voice in the back of my head said, Don't worry about none of that, don't worry about none of that, just keep going. Any robots that I incurred, and there were a lot of them in this space, don't worry about it, keep going. And so that's what I would tell people. Don't worry about it, keep going. Yeah, don't worry about it, keep going.

SPEAKER_03 26:10

Lean into your purpose, yeah, yeah, and and be creative and embrace, you know, your God-given gifts. Yeah, absolutely. That's a bar.

Events, Classes, And How To Help

SPEAKER_03 26:18

Um, so what's next for Good Spirit Cafe and how can our audience support you?

SPEAKER_04 26:23

Oh, wow. Um, definitely come to the cafe. We have so many events, so many programs that I'm putting together right now. Um, yesterday we had a Vibes and Vino Party, which was turned out fantastic. People came in here and purchased albums from one of our vendors, kind of went down memory lane. You hear people feeling nostalgic, like, oh my God, I remember this when I was in middle school. I remember this from high school. This is the soundtrack of my life. Um, and just seeing people with that joy. I have all these albums. I don't have not near one record player. I have not bought a record player yet. Um, we have a self-care workshop that's coming up on the 23rd. We have a blog party that's coming on June 6th. I have on Mondays and Tuesdays, my plan is to turn this into a move studio. So we'll have, yeah, so we'll have different practitioners coming in talking about um meditation, um, mindfulness, stretchologists, um, yoga classes, um, somatic dancing, um, stuff like that. So definitely if you're looking to know everything about good spirit, please go to my website, goodspiritcafe.com. My calendar is up there. You can see all the programming events that we have coming up. Um, my goal is to bring some um speakers in here on and speakers who are subject matter experts on wellness, on um mental health, on physical health, um, just everything that makes us whole and well, you know, from the top of your head to the bottom of your feet.

SPEAKER_00 28:03

So the wellness piece sounds really exciting, and we'll definitely connect your calendar so that people can see it.

Closing Reflections And Gratitude

SPEAKER_00 28:13

But I know I'm excited to see where the space goes and you know what it becomes. It's already just so wonderful, so peaceful. And for our listeners who are in the DMV or when you're passing through the DMV, I definitely think this is a great space to visit. So, you know, just encourage people to keep an eye out.

SPEAKER_03 28:34

Kahana, we're just so thrilled that you took the time to talk to us. This has been a highlight for us. It's a different type of energy and warmth to sit here with you in your cafe. You've really built a beautiful and meaningful space, and we just wish you all the best. You've got two people here who are rooting and cheering for your success. Thanks so much. We'll spread the word um with our network, but really congratulations on building something amazing.

SPEAKER_04 29:04

Oh, thank you so much. I'm so honored that you guys have come here and conducted this interview. I'm so grateful. And so just thank you so much for allowing me to do this.