Eddie’s Cafe to employ people with special needs

WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) – Eddie’s Cafe is opening in west Wichita and will employ people with special needs. The grand opening is on Saturday, May 4, at 7 a.m. The address is 8643 W. Central.

Eddie’s Cafe was formerly Carpe Diem. Carpe Diem opened a year ago and closed in the fall due to the owner’s health issues. The mission at Carpe Diem was also to employ people with special needs, and Eddie’s Cafe is carrying it on. New co-owner Andrew Pfannenstiel has a son named Eddie with a rare neurological disease that affects his brain and muscular development that only affects about 350 people worldwide.

“We wanted to care for our son and really give back to the community,” Pfannenstiel said. “One of the ways we thought of doing that was opening up a cafe where special needs workers can learn life skills.”

James Kratky is one of the employees. He has a special needs child and is on the spectrum himself.

“There are a lot of people out there that see kids and they’ll either lose their temperament or have a small meltdown because of the sensory overload, and parents start to feel bad because of the fact that their kids have an overload episode,” Kratky said. “Every parent should have a place to be able to take their kid, and here at Eddie’s Cafe, it’s definitely the mission, and it’s definitely obvious, and I just had to support it.”

Hours will be 7 a.m. – 2 p.m., every day but Tuesday. They are still hiring . At Saturday’s grand opening, customers will get 25% off all orders and 50% off for those who wear Star Wars gear.

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