The fiery death of Higher Grounds has burned a hole in my heart. Higher Grounds represented everything that is good about the coffee shop scene. The business showed support for local artists and musicians, allowing artists to display and sell their work at Higher Grounds. The shop had a small stage where local musicians and touring acts played concerts.

The atmosphere of the shop was perfect for studying, reading, or holding conversation with friends. Higher Grounds epitomized the hometown coffee shop with their humble brews. However, with their passing, Russellville is left with only the corporation known as Starbucks.

Starbucks represents many things that are wrong with the art scene. Their faceless rectangle buildings are decorated, not with local artists’ work, but with computer-generated images that bear the name Starbucks. The music sold on its racks and played throughout its cave of a coffee shop is limited to artists who already have plenty of money in the bank, therefore neglecting up-and-coming musicians. Instead of using the excess profit to support music and art, the business suppresses the creativity of new artists. Its slogans encourage people to recycle and be green like they are. However, even though the cups say “please recycle,” there are no recycling bins present in Starbucks. I suppose you are to carry the cup home with you and deposit it into your own bin (so the business does not have to pay for it).

So with every cup of coffee that I must now make myself, I will mourn the loss of the only local coffee shop that did not adhere to the misgivings of the mainstream. Rest in peace Higher Grounds, but please come back — Russellville needs you.