The Coffee Doc Opens Second Location Inside Ashland Area YMCA
By: Sasha Bush
The Greater Ashland Beacon
The Ashland Area YMCA seems to always be on the cutting edge of things. Much of this is due in part to one man’s vision for the Ashland Area YMCA that becomes more of reality with watch passing day. Scott Campbell, Executive Director of the Ashland Area YMCA, has been nothing short of amazing with his creative ideas, which has offered steady growth of the YMCA ever since he joined the Ashland Area YMCA family back in mid 2019. “I like to think outside the box and come up with things that people can take advantage of as a member here at the Ashland Area YMCA,” stated Campbell. Campbell’s vision for the Ashland Area YMCA has brought with it numerous new classes and community outreach programs. The newest addition that everyone is talking about recently is the opening of a coffee shop inside the Ashland Area YMCA—The Coffee Doc.
If you haven’t heard of the Coffee Doc by now, then you have really been missing out. The Coffee Doc originally made its grand debut as a traveling coffee truck and quickly became all the rage. With obtaining what seemed like overnight success, Coffee Doc soon grew out of its humble beginning and felt the need to expand. They now have locations not only inside the Ashland Area YMCA but also the Ashland Town Center Mall. Jessica Caudill, owner of the Coffee Doc shared with us just how it all got started, “After my husband Charlie retired, it didn’t take long for me to realize just how much I was missing out on with our children in the evenings. That’s when I decided I wanted to find something that I could do that would allow me to stay home with our children.”
The Coffee Doc as Caudill explained, “is absolutely thrilled to be part of the YMCA family, and we are really excited to be here.” Caudill went on to add, “We have relabeled some of our menu items, but no worries. They are the same items that you know and love, which are offered at our other location. We really wanted to play off the whole Doc theme, so we renamed our Iced Chai latte the Chill Pill.” One of the most iconic drinks that the Coffee Doc offers at both locations is that of its Chief of Staff. “The Chief of Staff is our house coffee that we make fresh every morning from our secret recipe.”
In addition to custom coffees and desserts, the Coffee Doc will also be offering a wide variety of new healthy options at its YMCA location. Campbell had the pleasure of being the first to try one these new concoctions, “The Fruity Pebbles milkshake is delicious. I can’t believe it’s packed full of 25 grams of protein and is only 110 calories,” noted Campbell. Another new drink to the menu is what Caudill has named “The Workout.” The Workout is a sugar-free shaken espresso that offers the highest caffeine intake with the lowest number of calories.
The Coffee Doc will also be offering a variety of hot meal items in the evenings. “We have a lot of children that get dropped off in the evenings and like to spend hours in the facility. Often, we notice that when they get hungry, they will walk down to the nearest restaurant or cross the four lanes of traffic to get to the pizza shop. Crossing that many lanes of traffic worries us, so we wanted to be able to offer them hot meal options right here in the YMCA. The Coffee Doc will be offering different foods such as pizza, hotdogs and pretzels in the evenings,” declared Campbell. One thing the Ashland Area YMCA is all about is the safety and catering to its youth.
The Coffee Doc’s YMCA location is now open Monday-Friday from 5:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m., Saturdays from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. and on Sundays from 1 p.m. to 8 p.m. You do not have to be a member of the Ashland Area YMCA to come in and experience all that the Coffee Doc has to offer. All you have to do is let the front desk know that you are there to visit the Coffee Doc, and you can even get a free day pass for the YMCA while you are there.