Cup of Cool water welcomes youth downtown

By Mary Stamp

At Cup of Cool Water (CCW) at 1106 W. Second, Daniel Lufiyele finds joy in helping youth and young adults on the streets change the narratives of their lives.

"Seeing lives change is where I discover God," said Daniel, who became executive director there in June 2024, after serving two years as associate director.

One young man who walked into the drop-in center had not come for a year because he had been in jail. Daniel welcomed him home with a big smile and heartfelt warmth.

"To see the joy on his face realizing I had missed him and cared made my day," he said. "To see their hope that life can be better makes my life worth living."

There are more than second chances for the youth and young adults ages 14 to 24 who drop in at Cup of Cool Water for lunch Monday to Thursday, for dinner Tuesday and Thursday or to do laundry, find clothes, get an ID, pick up mail, have a shower, learn life skills, find a job or converse with someone.

Cup of Cool Water has served marginalized youth downtown since 1995, "offering youth compassion without judging how they have carried their burdens," he said.

Daniel started a conversation with a youth one day, asking, "What is a human being?" When the youth turned the question back to him, Daniel replied, "A human being may be vulnerable, mad, limited or broken but is also a gifted image-bearer of God, created by God and in God's image.

"That can't be taken away. Even if traumatized, a human being is gifted, capable of singing, playing sports, working and loving," said Daniel.

"We are here as a community to learn from one another. There is nothing more fulfilling than to see a life transformed," he said.

"Cup of Cool Water, which was founded in 1995, is a community committed to following Jesus' teachings by caring for and serving marginalized youths and young adults without a space of their own to call home," says the website. "We do this by creating safe spaces where youths can build healthy relationships based on compassion, unconditional love and respect for each other."

CCW also provides services to meet daily needs and programs to help clients set and achieve goals.

Daniel understands what it is to be vulnerable. He grew up "an underdog" in a poor family in Harare, Zimbabwe, a poor country.

Attending a Church of Christ, he became involved with Youth for a Mission in Southern Africa, discipling and mentoring young people for missions. Wanting to do mission work, in 2002 he came to the U.S. to the University of the Nations in Kona, Hawaii, to do a four-month module on intercultural studies. In September 2024, he completed a master's degree in team-based communication.

After the first program in 2002, he went to Shanghai, China, as a missionary, teaching English and working with young Koreans, Japanese and Chinese as a personal tutor, helping them realize they were all created in God's image.

"From that common ground, we helped them overcome differences in the past and work toward reconciliation," he said.

In 2005, Daniel came to Coeur d'Alene as an intern preacher at Destiny Faith Church.

While in Coeur d'Alene he met his wife, Amber, at a school barbeque in 2007. She was also interested in doing mission work. They were married in 2008 and went to Zimbabwe and then to Atlanta, Ga., to be near her family. While there, Daniel received his green card.

In 2012, they went to Harare to start Pillar of Legacy, a program he still helps run. It provides community development, serves widows and orphans, empowers communities, and provides seeds and technology.

When he returned to the U.S., a friend connected him with the Hillside Discipleship Church in Lapeer, Mich., where he served as youth minister and director of family discipleship from 2017 to 2019.

After briefly returning to Africa, Daniel moved with his family to Coeur d'Alene where he saw an ad for the executive director of Cup of Cool Water. He was drawn by its mission to help youth.

CCW is less about youth who are struggling and more about youth who are succeeding, said Daniel, who posts pictures on the wall of CCW youth who are now thriving.

Soon after he came, COVID hit, reducing attendance. He prepared lunch and served it downstairs, but volunteers couldn't come as a group to help. One volunteer helped by making peanut butter sandwiches.

"We draw youth who come to have basic needs met, but we offer a community that cares," he said.

Some are in shelters. Others have apartments, are from dysfunctional homes, live in group homes, are couch surfing, aged out of foster homes or live under bridges.

They may be drawn by their need for clothes and food, but they want more.

Daniel likens CCW to the father welcoming the prodigal son home. The son, who was given everything, lost it all and became chronically homeless. He needed more than to have his basic needs met. He needed to be welcomed back into the family and community.

When the prodigal son returned, he did not ask his father for food but to be part of the family and community so he could find a job and provide food for himself.

CCW is more than a caring community. It is part of a wider community, partnering with Feed Spokane and Women and Children's Free Restaurant, which provide food. It also partners with Volunteers of America to help with housing in a shelter or apartments, with SNAP to help with job skills, and with Frontier Behavioral Health to help with mental health and drug treatment.

"We connect youth to resources in the wider community," Daniel said.

While CCW provides food, clothing, sleeping bags and backpacks, the seven staff—including his wife, Amber—and volunteers help youth build resumes, apply for jobs and practice interviewing skills.

Until recently, Cool Water Painters offered stipend-based summer training to help young adults develop job skills such as punctuality, teamwork and consistency.

CCW's plan has been to move its on-the-job program to a year-round program. When the painting program coordinator left, they began to focus on that.

Daniel decided to partner with organizations to provide training all year. These jobs include grounds maintenance, snow removal, leaf removal, gardening or lawn care.

Daniel, staff and volunteers engage youth in conversations, listen to their life experiences and ask them how they want to change the narrative of their lives, so they are ready for jobs.

For information, visit cupofcoolwater.org.