Donations for Family of Kaffeinate Coffee Shop Owner Triple Original Goal

The GoFundMe campaign to support the family of Kong Lee — who was killed in the Durham explosion last month — has tripled its original goal.

As of Wednesday, the GoFundMe campaign organized by UNC’s Entrepreneurship Center at the Kenan-Flagler Business School had raised just over $150,000. The donations will be used to family prepare a funeral service, cover the mortgage of his home, and provide security while they prepare to rebuild the coffee shop.

Additionally, campaigns organized by the Eshelman School of Pharmacy and Durham School of the Arts have combined to raise close to $30,000 for the family.

Dates for a celebration of Mr. Lee’s life and a funeral have also been announced.

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The staff at Kaffeinate used to joke that all our dad wanted was to be everyone's dad. The best part of all of this has been getting to see all the people who felt our dad's love and have now come to love us in his honor. – We would like to invite you to celebrate our dad's life, love, and impact with us. The visitation will be Tuesday, May 7th 4-7pm. The funeral will be Wednesday, May 8th at 11am. Both events will be at New Horizon Church in Durham (100 Horizon Place Durham, NC 27705). – Our deepest gratitude to New Horizon Church and Hall-Wynne Funeral Service & Cremation for helping us through this time. Our deepest gratitude also to all of you for everything. – We hope you will join us so our dad can smile down and see how large his family has grown. – Diana and Raymond

A post shared by kaffeinate (@kaffeinatenc) on Apr 30, 2019 at 1:33pm PDT

Visitation for a celebration of Mr. Lee’s life and impact on the community will take place on Tuesday, May 7 from 4-7 p.m. The funeral will be Wednesday, May 8 at 11 a.m. Both events will be held at New Horizon Church in Durham.

“The staff at Kaffeinate used to joke that all our dad wanted was to be everyone’s dad,” Mr. Lee’s children said in a message on the GoFundMe page. “The best part of all this has been getting to see all the people who felt our dad’s love and have now come to love us in his honor.”