Brewing change one cup at a time

ST. LOUIS, Mo. – In his seventh grade history class, Noah Temple learned how children in other countries often lack access to quality education, a privilege he enjoyed every day.

 “Children were facing the effects of a past they had nothing to do with, and that didn’t really sit right with me,” said Temple, who is now 18 and a freshman in college. Within a few months, he had launched his own company, Junior Java, to bring attention to a problem he was passionate about.

He settled on selling coffee because it is “the second most drunk beverage in the world behind water.” He later expanded the business to include tea, the world’s No. 3 beverage. With every bag of Junior Java coffee or tea sold, $5 goes toward school supplies for children in need.

“It was definitely a learning experience on all fronts,” Temple said. “From roasting coffee in my kitchen, to learning how to design my first website, to branding, to figuring out how to sell my own coffee.”

Junior Java got a boost in 2023 when Noah, by then a student at Ladue Horton Watkins High School in St. Louis, entered the Young Entrepreneur Pitch Challenge, a statewide contest held by the Missouri AfterSchool Network (MASN), which is hosted by University of Missouri Extension’s 4-H Center for Youth Development.

The pitch challenge gives young people the chance to turn ideas into action by guiding them through the process of developing, pitching and refining a business concept, says Aaron Banks, youth workforce initiatives coordinator for MASN. The challenge builds practical skills such as problem-solving, communication and financial thinking while connecting participants with mentors and supportive adults through after-school programs. Since MASN’s first pitch challenge in 2020, around 150 students have participated and almost $10,000 in prize money has been awarded.

Noah submitted a 90-second video pitch and placed second in the state competition, missing first place by just half a point, Banks says. Noah went on to a national pitch competition managed by the Young Entrepreneur Institute. This time he came in first.

“What the pitch competition did was take my existing business and give it a lot more exposure,” he said. “That allowed me to make more sales and definitely make a bigger impact.”

“Things really accelerated for him at that point,” Banks said. “And we stayed in contact. Anytime we learned about an opportunity that might benefit him, we could reach out and say, ‘Hey, have you thought about this?’”

Noah was invited to MASN’s annual Missouri School Age Conference (MOSAC), where he spoke to more than 500 educators and sold coffee at the event’s youth marketplace. “That first year, we raised over $900 worth of school supplies in less than an hour. The next year, we raised $800.”

Temple says MASN connected with him opportunities, including helping him partner with a local coffee shop that promotes Black-owned businesses.

To date, Junior Java has donated $12,000 in school supplies. Junior Java has had local impact, supporting his high school’s chapter of DECA, an organization that aids in preparing emerging leaders and entrepreneurs for college and careers; the Ladue Education Foundation, which helps provide educational opportunities for the school district of Ladue; and the St. Louis Area Foodbank.

“I just can’t say enough nice things about Noah,” Banks said. “His heart for helping other people, his kindness. He’s extremely intelligent. He embodies all of the things you think a young entrepreneur would have.”

Temple is now studying international business at St. Louis University’s campus in Madrid, Spain, as he looks to build a career beyond Junior Java. “No matter what I do, it’s going to be something in social entrepreneurship,” he says. “Using business to solve global problems: That’s what I’m really passionate about.”

Meanwhile, back in St. Louis, Junior Java is still brewing strong. There’s a weekly café at his church, serving fresh coffee and donuts while raising funds for both the youth ministry and school supplies for children worldwide. “I trained a team to run the café every Sunday,” Noah said. “They’re learning durable skills—entrepreneurship, communication—that will help them for life.”

Mott Million Dollar Challenge

In addition to participating in MASN’s 2026 Young Entrepreneur Pitch Challenge, Missouri youths can enter the national Mott Million Dollar Challenge, supported by the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation. The Mott Million Dollar Challenge is a national pitch competition for students in grades K–12 that invites young innovators to submit a 30- to 90-second video pitch about a business concept or community solution. Students can enter solo or in small teams, competing for a total prize pool of $1 million. Top entries participate in a live pitch event and celebration in Flint, Michigan.

About the Missouri AfterSchool Network

The Missouri AfterSchool Network (MASN) works to strengthen and expand quality after-school and summer learning programs across the state. Hosted by University of Missouri Extension’s 4-H Center for Youth Development, MASN connects educators, youth-serving organizations and community partners to share resources, build skills and elevate best practices. Its goal is to ensure that young people throughout Missouri have access to safe, engaging after-school programs that support learning, workforce readiness and healthy development beyond the school day.

Video

Student to CEO: The Journey of Noah Temple.

Photos

Noah Temple, now 18, launched Junior Java when he was in seventh grade.

Sales of Junior Java coffee and tea help support educational equity for children in need around the world.