Jessica DeanMama Bean

2019 February 14

Sydney Nichols with husband Ben Nichols

Valentine’s Day, 32 years ago, a group of teenagers stumbled into a flower shop in

Alabama. Laughter and teasing, followed by an alcoholic aroma, filled the crowded

room of people waiting shoulder to shoulder to pick up their flower orders for the

special day. Their behavior was light-hearted, yet disruptive, and Sydney Nichols, at

the time 18, was quick to recognize the severity of the situation.

“I wanted to say something, but I didn’t,” says Nichols.

Early the next day, Nichols arrived for her morning shift at the flower shop and a

man approached her with tragic news. One of the teenagers, a friend of Nichols,

from the night before was killed in a car accident.

“I decided then I would always speak out and do what I feel is right,” says Nichols,

who has since then kept her promise.

Today, they call her Mama Bean. Nichols greets her college-aged employees with a

grin and words of encouragement. A block from Samford lawn in downtown

Auburn, Sydney Nichols is in her home away from home—but close to heart—coffee

shop known to many as The Bean. Nichols is well acquainted with the retro vintage

furniture, roasted Fair Trade coffee beans and the customers attracted to her unique

Auburn shop that she and her family of three opened four years ago this April.

“Eat your Wheaties because it’s gonna be busy,” she says.

She begins folding her hands in a towel neatly tucked into the front of her flower-

printed apron before pouring steaming hot water over a filtered pile of freshly

ground coffee beans. Like a chemist in her lab, she shuffles around the vibrant

kitchen, brow furrowed, as she searches for one of her ceramic mugs.

Her voice bounces off the cement walls as she rounds the blue counter top that

divides kitchen from dining room. With the fresh brewed cup of coffee in hand, she

makes eye contact and calls out a young college student’s name. A smile spreads

across both faces.

The coffee comes from Free Trade Roasters to provide fair wages to farmers

The Nichols’ family found their blessing in a cup of coffee. After a handful of efforts

to open a business, they have put their faith in a simply suggested idea of running a

coffee shop and worked toward making it a reality. Nichols gives all the glory to God

and her love for Christ. She worked in the youth ministry for over 15 years, and still

uses the delicious recipes from her church years in her shop today.

The most popular item at the Bean is the homemade cinnamon rolls. Collectively,

the cinnamon swirls, the icing and the bread balance like a fine orchestra in tune

with one another to perform a symphony of sweetness. Nichols learned the recipe

from her service in the church, which has since been perfected by the coffee shop

owner, and serves the scrumptious dessert as a best seller on her menu.

“We become a family as a staff here, and we get to know each other,” says Nichols.

“First, I love Jesus as my Lord and Savior, my husband and my daughter Hope. But, I

do love my business. I love what I do.”

Nichols means what she says about being a family at the Bean both literally and

figuratively. Mama Bean sees her employees and customers as her own family, but a

visit to the shop is a guarantee visit with either Nichols, her husband or their

daughter who serves as head barista.

“The coffee shop was actually my idea,” says Nichols’ daughter Hope.

Nichols dream to own a business sparked from her roots. She was raised in Pell City,

Alabama, and like many Alabamians, her hometown helped shape her future and

influence where she is today.

Before Nichols was born, her granddad Edgar Dorough opened Pell City Steak House

that operated functionally by family members. Her granddad passed away when she

was 2, but she felt like she always knew him through stories as a loving man.

Growing up watching her family devote time and love into a business that cultivated

such a community environment inspired Nichols to follow in her granddad’s

footsteps.

“Everything he did was based on integrity and honesty. Growing up around that, I

just always felt like it was tradition,” says Nichols.

Nichols met her husband, Ben, in Pell City, and the two dreamed of becoming

business owners. After bouncing around the Yellowhammer State, the couple settled

down in Auburn with their daughter.

Nichols’ journey to the shop has proven to be difficult, and she and her family picked

up some bruises along the way. Nichols’ daughter, Hope, can recall some tough

times in high school when she was first diagnosed with Lyme disease.

“My mom did everything,” she says. “She was my best friend, but also my nurse, my

mom and my researcher. I never doubt that my mom loves me. She took care of me

and sacrificed everything.”

This Valentine’s Day, Nichols remembers her promise she made over 30 years ago.

Nichols continues to stand firm in her beliefs, remember her roots and speak out to

benefit others. Nichols has poured her heart into her shop for the Auburn

community and has made those who call it home and those just passing through feel

her fierce love.

The Bean’s central location is the perfect spot to gather as a community in Auburn

Naomi Bolt, a former college student at Auburn who worked for Nichols off and on

for over four years, asked that the Nichols be a part of her wedding two years ago.

Bolt, like many others, sees Nichols as a complete rarity.

“Mrs. Sydney is absolutely selfless. She poured her heart into her customers, her

husband, her daughter and myself,” says Bolt. “Her love for everyone around her is

unmatched by any other person I’ve met. There is nothing she does that isn’t done

with love.”

Sydney Nichols- 334.728.5906

Hope Nichols- 334.734.6737

Naomi Bolt- 205.612.5304