Alen Ivelic spent his summer working in Ocean City, more than 4,000 miles away from his family and friends in his native Croatia.
He’s one of a few hundred college-age foreign workers who came to the island this year for seasonal jobs and a taste of America. But the long working hours a long way from home can leave students like Ivelic longing for a sense of community.
J-1 Coffeehouse, a weekly gathering of international students working on the island, offers them a chance to connect with each other outside work, and to feel a sense of belonging.
The gathering is held each Tuesday in the gymnasium at Ocean City Baptist Church from May to late August, when the students start heading home for the beginning of the school year.
Ivelic, 23, works as a cashier at Augie’s Omelette House on Ninth Street. Without J-1 Coffeehouse, he said, many students would just stick with the other workers from their own country.
“Let’s face it, Tuesdays saved our social lives,” Ivelic told about 50 of his fellow students gathered in the gym for the last coffeehouse of the season on Tuesday, Aug. 25. He spoke after organizers of the event asked the students to share what this year’s coffeehouses meant to them.
The coffeehouse takes its name from the classification, J-1, of the exchange visa the students need to enter the United States.
The coffeehouse started informally eight years ago, when the church’s pastor, Kevin O’Brien, noticed more and more foreign students coming to the island for summer work.
“As I learned a little bit about what they do, I realized it was probably pretty intimidating for them to be here for eight to 10 weeks,” away from home and often with little guidance on how to quickly adjust to life in America, O’Brien said.
Around the same time, the pastor of a Ukrainian church in Pennsylvania happened to be vacationing across the street from the church at 10th Street and Wesley Avenue, and stopped in to inquire what could be done to offer support for the students, many of whom are from Eastern European countries.
The two congregations worked together to create the first coffeehouse at Ocean City Baptist Church, and it’s grown steadily since then, O’Brien said.
A few years ago, members of three Russian churches in Vineland began volunteering at the coffeehouse, as well as providing financial support for the weekly events, said David Letushko, one of the organizers.
“We came from a different country, we know it’s not easy to show up to a new place, especially if you’re 17, 18, 19, 20-years-old,” said Letushko, a Vineland resident.
“Some of them have friends here, some of them do not.”
Letushko, 29, immigrated with his family to the United States from Ukraine when he was 5.
Tuesday’s coffeehouse began with a simple, buffet-style meal for the students, many clustering in small groups to eat and talk. Letushko said some students may come only for the free food, but he hopes they stay for the spiritual message that follows the meal.
“We understand that a lot of them disagree (with the sermons) or don’t believe what we believe, but we still want them to come,” Letushko said.
There’s also a strong secular component to the coffeehouses. During previous events, students received practical advice on everything from how to open a bank account to how to find the best cellphone plan. And, the organizers try to help the students expand their horizons beyond Ocean City: J-1 Coffeehouse sponsored a free sightseeing trip to Philadelphia for them on Saturday, Aug. 29
At the end of the night at the last coffeehouse of the season, the students lined up at tables in the back of the gym, where they could each take home a bag of groceries such as cereal, eggs and milk.
“A few years ago when economy was really bad, we were hearing some people didn’t have enough money for groceries,” Letushko said, adding that members of the various churches involved in organizing the coffeehouses donate the groceries.
Earlier, Melinda Kovacs, 20, shared with the group why she thought J-1 Coffeehouse was special.
Kovacs came to Ocean City this summer from Romania to work as a housekeeper at Pavillion Motor Lodge at 8th Street and Atlantic Avenue.
“I never thought I could find a community like this,” she said. “And I’m not talking about food. I have a lot of memories I’ll bring home and share with everybody.”
Later in the evening, while sitting with friends, she said coming to America by herself would have been much harder without the comfort she found at J-1 Coffeehouse.
“You don’t know anyone,” she said, “but you know you belong here.”
For more information about J-1 Coffeehouse, visit the group’s Facebook page.
