The Treehouse, a South Jersey cafe and community hub, closes after 18 years

Just past the one-year anniversary of the coronavirus pandemic, Treehouse Coffee Shop in the small Camden County borough of Audubon closed Sunday after 18 years of providing, as it billed itself, “a sanctuary from the negative, stress-filled society we live in.”

Owners Randy and Tina Van Osten — a Baptist minister and a science teacher, respectively — say they got into the coffee business more than a decade ago because it was “God’s calling.” The name, Tina explained, came from the Bible: trees planted by streams of water grow leaves to heal people and fruit to feed people.

“It has guided us and I think we have done that over the years. It has been the way we talk to people, how we serve them, and how we make our food,” said Tina, who teaches environmental science and biology at UrbanPromise Academy in Camden.

The Treehouse, which got its start in Collingswood, was wildly popular among its customers from the borough and beyond who enjoyed its organic coffees and teas, and desserts baked in-house. And there was the music. Open mics in the evenings and children’s sing-alongs in the mornings. There was Irish and Christian music, poetry readings and community discussions.

But the past year was hard for the couple and their two children. They were able to continue with window service through the shutdown, and a federal grant, along with awards from both the state and the county, helped them pay their baristas.

But it wasn’t enough.

“We couldn’t gather. And that’s what we are,” Tina said.

Yet, the community came to gather Sunday to remember fond times and say goodbye.

Robert Lee, the borough’s public safety director, says the coffee shop was “just one of those places that immediately made you feel like you belong. It was comfortable. People loved to come, to just come and hang out. Nobody cared who you are. You were friends.”

Emily Giordano and Emilee Dinella, both 21, had been regulars “for as long as I can remember,” said Giordano. On Sunday, they posed with Randy Van Osten for photos.

Musician Sara O’Brien was also there, playing her guitar at the “last call.” She led many of the Tuesday morning “Expresso Yourself” sing-alongs for parents and kids.

Also stopping by Sunday was Melanie Gonzalez, who will be graduating with her nursing degree from Neumann University in a few months.

“I would be here eight hours a day, doing my homework with my kids, at least five days a week. This was our second home,” Gonzalez said.

The Treehouse sold out of food shortly after noon, but customers were lined up for hours, even as the 4 p.m. last call came.

“It has been bittersweet,” Randy Van Osten said. “There have been so many people who came today. So much love.”