Jody, Casey and Dan in lovely Crested Butte, CO in 2003
Myname is Casey McConnell and I live in Aspen Colorado. I maintain all the marketing and customer service here in this beautiful setting. Before moving to Aspen I moved to Delta Colorado in January of 2002 from the Front Range of Colorado. I didn't have a clue what a city dweller like myself would do for a living in a rural area like Delta. I soon realized this area has one of the finest fruit growing climates in the world, lots of sun, lots of water, over 300 days of sunshine and cool Colorado nights. This makes Delta the perfect place to grow many different kinds of fruit that make wonderful juices. But juice is nothing new, go to your local grocery store and you'll find something with juice in it. I needed something unique or special about what I wanted to bottle. So,divine intervention walks in, in the form of my father. It just so happens that very day I had been hanging out thinking and praying about what I was to add to my juice and in walks my Dad with this product, whey protein isolate. So needless to say, I was pretty excited to learn more about this stuff. I immediately started researching and exploring all the clinically proven health benefits, which was a ton of information to take in. The biggest thing I realized was how tasty the whey protein made the juice drink taste. So this was the start of Zoë juice. However, it took over a year to learn all the ins and outs of making Zoë, finding fruit suppliers year round, bottle suppliers, shipping, putting labels together and of course finding the perfect combination of ingredients to make what is now Zoë. Quickly I realized there are a lot of drinks out there and being human I experienced a whole lot of emotions from fear to doubt. Fortunately, I have a very strong relationship with my family who continually offered support both emotionally and spiritually. Plus they have been there to help in any which way they could, from being my taste testers to dishing out major financial help. Without them I would not be where I am today and I owe them all a great deal of thanks.
"People come into our lives with nuggets of hope."
I have so many stories of people who have helped me and went out of their way to see this dream and vision of Zoë become a reality. Dan and Jody came into my life in the summer of 04. I was heading home from seeing my sister in Aspen and saw this couple who were hitchhiking. My spirit told me I needed to stop and offer a ride to them. I don't think Jody knew what she was in for. I had a convertible which is a manual and that means in the summer the top is
down regardless of circumstance (rain/cold). Dan and Jody are from West Palm Beach, Florida and they were in town because they had hiked to Aspen from Crested Butte and needed a ride back over the mountain. I was headed in that direction. This started the connection that got the dream started. For the next few hours we learned all about each other and enjoyed the beautiful ride back to Crested Butte. Dan and Jody spoke such encouraging words to me which had a profound effect on me. After a lovely time together at the head of the hiking trail and their car within walking distance, we said our good byes. Dan however made a monumental gesture and purchased the first box of Zoë juice. With that encouragement and purchase, the dream became a reality. Thank you Dan and Jody and the countless others along the way!
