Even in February, the coldest month of the year, the team at Mocha Connection attends the Somerville Market to spread their initiative to combat addiction in Yemen.
The community-based initiative has helped over 2,500 farmers turn away from planting an addictive stimulant known as Qat. Its alternative is a crop that has a long history in Yemen: coffee beans.
The self proclaimed “four musketeers,” Moiz Bhindarwala, Idris Dahod, Khozaima Shakir and Nishreen Mahesri, decided to take action after meeting Shabbir A. Ezzi, founder of Al-Ezzi industries: a company that was established based on the needs of farmers in Yemen. Each team member works on the Mocha Connection in their free time.
The four had been aware of the problems those in Yemen faced. In the past they have held food drives, as well as grassroots initiatives, through their mosque.
“We are a small Muslim originated community. The last two decades we have been very active as a community in regard to Yemen,” said…
