![\"Blake](\"https:\/\/www2.baylor.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/batsons-sept23.jpg\")
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You\u2019d be hard-pressed to find a Baylor student over the last 30 years who hasn\u2019t set foot in Common Grounds<\/a> at least once. Blake (BA ’08) and Kimberly (BA ’07) Batson were once among those students; many years later, they’ve made Common Grounds — and the Waco community — integral parts of their adult lives.<\/p>\n Coffee, books, pizza, ice cream — those are just a few of the offerings the Batsons have added to Waco through an entrepreneurial spirit and community focus.<\/p>\n The roots go back to Blake\u2019s Baylor days as a Common Grounds barista. A philosophy major, he found he enjoyed working at Common Grounds, and the Batsons eventually purchased the iconic coffee shop. That was just the beginning. They’ve followed that move by building establishments that have become Waco dining staples, including Slow Rise Slice House<\/a>, Milo<\/a>, and Heritage Creamery<\/a>.<\/p>\n Kimberly, an English major, had business dreams of her own. Specifically, she\u2019d long hoped to own a bookstore. Years of hard work and planning led to the 2019 opening of Fabled Bookshop and Cafe<\/a>, along with business partner Alison Frenzel. The independent bookstore quickly drew praise both for its selection of books and its overall aesthetic (which includes a fun, interactive nod<\/a> to the classic series of Narnia books by C.S. Lewis; anyone who has visited the bookstore with young children is likely familiar).<\/p>\n As they\u2019ve built new businesses in Waco, the Batsons have remained close to their alma mater. (There\u2019s even a Common Grounds on campus in the Bill Daniel Student Center!) In 2019, the Batsons\u2019 coffee roaster, Native Sons Roasters, collaborated with the university to launch a Baylor blend<\/a> that supported Baylor Missions trips and communities around the globe.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have a passion for bringing people together over a cup of coffee, inspired food or a great book,\u201d Kimberly Batson said when the blend was launched. \u201cThe opportunity to spread this passion of creating connection to communities, especially those making a difference in our world, was incredible.\u201d<\/p>\n Far from complacent, they continue to launch new locations of Common Grounds, Slow Rise and Heritage Creamery. They\u2019ll soon open a third Waco-area Common Grounds<\/a>. There\u2019s even, believe it or not, a Common Grounds in the shadows of the TCU campus<\/a> in Fort Worth. The next time you find yourself there, consider it a green and gold lifeline from two community-minded Baylor alums amidst that sea of purple.<\/p>\n Sic \u2019em, Blake and Kimberly Batson!<\/p>\n Other Bears who have found success staying in Waco:<\/em><\/strong> You\u2019d be hard-pressed to find a Baylor student over the last 30 years who hasn\u2019t set foot in Common Grounds at least once. Blake (BA ’08) and Kimberly (BA ’07) Batson were once among those students; many years later, they’ve made Common Grounds — and the Waco community — integral parts of their adult lives. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-24107","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-alumni"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www2.baylor.edu\/baylorproud\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24107","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www2.baylor.edu\/baylorproud\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www2.baylor.edu\/baylorproud\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www2.baylor.edu\/baylorproud\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www2.baylor.edu\/baylorproud\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=24107"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www2.baylor.edu\/baylorproud\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24107\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www2.baylor.edu\/baylorproud\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=24107"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www2.baylor.edu\/baylorproud\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=24107"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www2.baylor.edu\/baylorproud\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=24107"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\n* Three former Baylor student-athletes find success in Waco commercial real estate<\/a> (April 2024)
\n* Pastor-turned-entrepreneur brings the love to Waco through Pop\u2019s, MacHouse & CheddarBox<\/a> (Jan. 2024)<\/em>
\n* From a single hat to an entire company, Baylor alum\u2019s company blossoms in Waco<\/a> (July 2023)<\/em>
\n* Baylor grads roast nationally recognized coffee in Waco<\/a> (July 2023)<\/em>
\n* Baylor alum builds community in Waco (and beyond) through cha<\/a> (June 2023)<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"