Have you been searching for a place to hang out with your friends, cram for your upcoming test or grab a quick drink before class?  

Thr3e is a local coffee shop found just across the street from PHS. Manager, Amy Schweim said that the coffee shop started out as a coffee stand in the church, also located across the street from PHS.    

“Twelve years ago we opened. We started with a little espresso stand in our church selling to people on Sunday mornings. When we bought this property, we always thought about having a coffee shop for high school students,” Schweim said. 

Schweim hasn’t always been in the world of business, her background being found in faith. Though there have been hard moments, Schweim describes the amount of life experience running the business has given her.  

“It’s built relationships; it has allowed me to expand my leadership skills,” Schweim said. “It has taught me how to work with younger generations, how to motivate, explain things, delegate and how to make sure that things are running smoothly. I have a theology background and so the business side isn’t always natural to me; I’ve figured out how to order and do all the bank stuff, that kind of thing.” 

Across their menu you can find a variety of drinks for a caffeine fix or prepared foods such as cookies and muffin tops. Overall, if you are looking for a traditional coffee menu, that is what they offer.  

“[We have] a basic coffee menu and there isn’t really any big thing, just typical to what you would find at any other coffee shop,” Schweim said. “[We have been] trying to expand the menu to give more options, it’s just a trial and error… we just try something and if it works, it works, and well order it again, if it doesn’t, we’ll move onto the next thing.” 

It is known that high school students can tend to have problematic tendencies, even if that is true Schweim said they can still be fun to work with. 

“I really enjoy working with students who come in, even though sometimes they can give us problems, but for the most part they’re really respectful… I’ve also really enjoyed working with the employees and helping them to grow [and learn different] skills,” Schweim said.  

Thr3e runs Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Schweim said they run the shop based on the school hours because that is where their business tends to come from.  

“It doesn’t make sense for us to be open [when the school is closed],” Schweim said. “Plus COVID, we were with such limited hours during COVID and the high school wasn’t operating the same… After COVID our bank account needed some rejuvenating… we [started] renting out after hours and on weekends at a pretty decent price and we get a lot of business that way.” 

Even with COVID being a problem, being able to come back has allowed them the chance to help students, specifically their employees, gain some real-world experiences.  

“[We help employees] by giving them a job first off and they do get their tips and then any bonuses but also just the life skills of learning how to do a startup,” Schweim said. “Even how to wash dishes properly or how to make cream cheese. If they are a little more advanced in their time with us, they learn how to place the Costco order and those kinds of things.”  

Although she enjoys her job as manager, Schweim said the way she acquired it was unexpected.  

“I actually didn’t have a choice because our manager quit three weeks before school started. It was kind of one of those things where we needed somebody, but I am pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoy it,” Schweim said.  

Schweim said she believes it is important for students to be seen and heard, as they are the future of this community. 

“I would say that high school students and junior high students, for the most part, are really good people, they’re often misunderstood,” Schweim said. “We need more places in our community for junior high and high school students to hang out after school. [We need] to invest in them because they’re the next generation, they’re going to be the ones who are supporting us as we get older… they can go on to be good workers in the workforce. The other thing I think would be to listen to them, they have really great ideas… [don’t] shut them down just because there young.”