Getting Kicked When You\’re Down

• January 31, 2010
• upslopebrewing
• no comments

I have always believed that one of the true benefits of starting a business and growing a following would be a means to enable giving to both a local and global community.

Timeline: Tuesday, January 12^th a 7.0 earthquake rocks Haiti. The estimates of casualities and fatalities begin, but in the back of your head you just know that the numbers are only headed in one direction. A world away, but somehow also in our backyard, the impact is felt. With some personal connections to Haiti, I read the headlines the next day and try to comprehend what it could possibly be like. That evening, I receive a phone call from Henry Wood, Upslope Brewing’s Director of Sales and Marketing, “We gotta help. What if we gave half of all tap room sales to the Red Cross on Friday?” We had donated to various charities in the past year, but never anything like this. “Let’s do it.” Chad put together an email blast the next day and the stage was set. We set a jar out on the bar for direct donations and unlocked the door. While Fridays can be a happening night at the tap room, the outcome was extraordinary. This group, these faces that we recognize as supporters from our infancy until now, came out not to just raise a pint, but to take part in taking care of a whole group of people latitudes away. Thanks to them, between pints and donations, we raised $750 and handed it over to the Red Cross. This is not an amount that will change the course of history, but it was a solid gesture from a fellow neighbor in the Western Hemisphere. We provided the means, and you gave. Thank you.

“A society is ultimately judged by how it treats its weakest and most vulnerable members.” – Anonymous