Couple seeks to open kid-friendly cafe in Chapel Hill

I wanted to share details about another local couple's efforts to open a similar cafe in Chapel Hill. Wilton and Kristine Brown, parents of a baby boy born last fall, are seeking to open the Kids Play Cafe. Like the Stay and Play Snack Cafe, they are hoping to fund the business through crowd sourcing. The Browns are using Indiegogo.com to raise money from the public.

Wilton tells me that his wife is active in a local moms group.

"One of their biggest complaints is not enough places that are baby friendly in the Chapel Hill area that they can feel comfortable taking their kids/babies to," he wrote me in an email. His wife challenged him to create a place in Chapel Hill.

The family knows what it's like to run a business. Wilton, who served in Iraq with the Army from 2004 to 2005, is owner of Tarheel Photo Booth and also works for the Department of Veteran Affairs. Kristine is a Wake County school teacher with almost nine years of experience.

The couple, with their little son Kenly, lives in Pittsboro.

"I know with my wife's experience with children in the school system and my experience in business and food service our concept will make our mark in Chapel Hill," Wilton tells me.