Pepperdine senior Christopher Hidalgo found the perfect way to bring together two things he believed every college student needs: Cappuccinos and Christ.
Hidalgo was a resident advisor at Seaside when he began Cappuccinos with Chris to offer residents free cappuccinos and conversation with residents. Hidalgo adapted his service and website twice more, focusing on the different resident needs and ways to incorporate Christianity.
“Cappuccinos with Chris is essentially an ever-growing, always adapting machine tailored toward the community’s needs,” Hidalgo said.
Hidalgo grew up in the Roman Catholic Church. At Pepperdine, Hidalgo said he learned how Christianity encourages seeking a relationship with Christ through the individual self versus through a church. Hidalgo said his relationship with Jesus is a collection of beliefs, and he uses tools from other religions to strengthen his faith.
In a capitalist society, Hidalgo, an accounting major, said he wants to use his knowledge of economic systems as a stepping stone to a greater vision of building communities.
“I want to create an empire for God,” Hidalgo said. “I think that’s what I’ve been sent on this Earth for is to join people together.”
To capitalize on the foot traffic of the website, Cappuccinos with Chris, where students were able to order their cappuccinos, Hidalgo decided to partner with two Girl Scout troops from Los Angeles to sell cookies on their behalf.
“That was important to me because these Girl Scout troops come from low to middle-class neighborhoods that aren’t safe to go door-to-door,” Hidalgo said. “This results in insufficient revenues — they can’t afford as many experiences like going to museums and other fun field trips for learning opportunities.”
Hidalgo and the Cappuccinos with Chris team sold over $700 worth of Girl Scout Cookies from February to March 2019.
When Hidalgo became an RA at Drescher, he created Cappuccinos with Christ, as he saw a great need for spiritual guidance amongst students. With this website, Hidalgo’s residents were able to leverage the integration of technology and service.
This service provided each resident with easy access to Bible studies, digital reminders, and other events Hidalgo hosted to unite the Drescher community. Cappuccinos with Christ offered residents Bible studies and a community to grow with spiritually, Hidalgo said.
As school evolved to be online, so did Hidalgo’s service.
He created Mornings with God, a website where he sells tea, and encourages people to not only start their mornings with a cup of tea but with God.
Hidalgo said he acquires the tea from many differently sourced companies. Hidalgo likes to do a quality test to ensure the best taste and the most efficient cost.
Hidalgo said the most prominent demand right now is serving social justice, which is the slogan for his service.
The proceeds from the tea sales go to the customer’s choice of one of four partner charities.
These charities include Black Lives Matter, Union Rescue Mission, Homeboy Industries and The Rosebud Program, which connects Pasadena children in need with a new backpack filled with grade-specific school supplies.
Hidalgo said his goal is to solve some of Los Angeles’ main problems: racial injustice, homelessness, mass incarceration and underfunded school systems.
Hidalgo attributed his drive and achievements to the examples his parents and grandparents set for him.
One of Hidalgo’s most influential experiences was working with his grandmother as a housekeeper each summer of high school. Hidalgo also had to maintain other commitments such as water polo and swim team practices and taking classes at a community college to get ahead.
Hidalgo recounted this experience as a humbling one. He takes pride in knowing that being a housekeeper is where he started.
This determination to succeed and be a well-rounded leader is what Hidalgo refers to as the “Hidalgo work ethic.”
Sophomore finance major Molly Tseng, Hidalgo’s girlfriend, admired Hidalgo’s ambition.
“He’s always thinking ahead and planning … he’s also very caring toward others,” Tseng said.
On their first date, Tseng said she and Hidalgo had encountered people without housing. Hidalgo got to know them, asked if they had eaten and bought them a meal.
Senior business major Christian Abad, Hidalgo’s best friend, helped run the operations for Cappuccinos with Chris. He described Hidalgo as outgoing, driven and compassionate.
“I know he really wants to dig deeper into giving back to the homeless community and creating opportunities for them to succeed,” Abad said.
Hidalgo said he would like to create cafes with his family, continuing the coffee theme he so deeply loves.
His goal is to hire people experiencing homelessness and offer them housing by customizing the cafes to have rooms for employees.
As of right now, Hidalgo wants to focus on sharpening his capitalist and leadership skills in a capitalist world that lacks unifying leaders, Hidalgo said.
Overall, Hidalgo said he strives to be a better child of God and dreams for the betterment of society.
“A society without ego, but with a purpose — and with passionate, joyful people being productive and giving glory to God,” Hidalgo said.
Kyla Moore completed the reporting for this story in Jour 241 in Fall 2021 under the supervision of Dr. Christina Littlefield and Dr. Theresa de los Santos. Dr. Littlefield supervised the web version of the story.
