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A surprise celebration at Salto

CHRISTOPHER KELLEY
Posted 1/15/25

NEDERLAND - On Saturday, January 11, 2025, as the sun began to set, cars parked in any available spot around Salto. The high ceilings of the coffeehouse were soon echoing with the voices of over fifty people, all friends of the establishment in...

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A surprise celebration at Salto

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NEDERLAND - On Saturday, January 11, 2025, as the sun began to set, cars parked in any available spot around Salto. The high ceilings of the coffeehouse were soon echoing with the voices of over fifty people, all friends of the establishment in one way or another.

Past and present employees of Salto and Tin Shed arrived. People from Nederland and all around the Peak to Peak area showed up, as did those from far out of town, to celebrate Marcus and Karina Luscher…except they weren’t there yet, as the whole event was organized as a surprise.  

And surprised they were once they arrived! Both of their faces beamed at the sight of so many friends and loved ones greeting them under the roof they so painstakingly built together over thirteen years ago. 

Salto and Tin Shed were Marcus and Karina’s vision put into reality, and has since grown to be a monumental meeting place that has meant so much to so many.

“My husband and I saw this empty lot and we drove by it so many times, and I really wanted to roast coffee and he really wanted a bike shop in town,” Karina said in an interview with The Mountain-Ear back in 2022. “It came from a place of just wanting to create a community hub where folks who enjoy the outdoors could come.”

Since then the Luschers have cultivated something truly special—so special that, once word spread that they were moving on to new horizons, those who had been there since the beginning, or who had been just a small part along the way, came to celebrate them. 

A poster of a beautiful photograph of Marcus and Karina posing out on the Salto patio was on display for visitors to sign.

“Thank you for taking the leap and letting me be a part of it all. Love you guys,” Josh wrote.

“Thank you for building such an amazing community and making it feel like family,” Alison signed. 

“It’s always felt like home; it’s felt like a living room we can come play music in. It’s been amazing. Good job Marcus and Karina,” Adam Pause of the NoGo Gillbillies said in between songs, as the band that was there in the beginning was playing one more set in the Salto space.

“I was super surprised,” Marcus said, grabbing the microphone to give a speech. “As Bruce drove by I was like ‘Oh my god, don’t stop because if we stop I’m gonna be stuck in the kitchen doing dishes…and I’m done with the dishes.’ ” The crowd laughed and erupted in cheers and applause.  

“The most important piece to this is, it would never have been anything without everyone in this room; you guys made this what it is. Thank you for all of the support and for being the community that Nederland is. This has been a project, a passion. There’s been a lot of tears, a lot of laughter, a lot of heartache, but it’s also been so much fun.”

Marcus also hinted a bit at what’s to come for the community hub that they’ve built: “Handing the keys off to someone else is so emotional, but I feel like we’re handing it off to the right people.”  

“I’ve been asked a lot about what’s my measure of success,” Karina said. “All of your kids, I got to watch them grow up here and we got to foster a cool place for them to come. I have my first original baristas here, and I have the current most amazing staff here, and that’s my measure of success.

“Every single one of you that’s in this building has made Salto what it is and has given me the energy to keep doing it, and I’m just forever grateful. And you still get to see me because I’m still gonna roast coffee!” She said to a joyous roar from the crowd.

“I’m not doing dishes anymore, though,” Marcus said, receiving a chorus of laughter.