Is there someone in your life—a healthcare worker, service industry employee or first responder—that you feel deserves a proper “thank you” for all that he or she has done during the pandemic? Well, you’re in luck. We Are Brewnited, a nonprofit launched by six local breweries in the spring of 2020 to support out-of-work service industry employees, has announced its “Nominate Your COVID Hero” program, which allows anyone the ability to send an essential worker a gift card to any restaurant in Albany, Rensselaer, Saratoga, Schenectady, Warren or Washington county. All you have to do is go to the Brewnited website, fill out a form with your nominee’s name, his or her address and the restaurant you’d like the gift card to be for, and Brewnited will take care of the rest.
“We all know someone who has done something nice or special to make things a bit easier for someone else during the pandemic,” says Max Oswald, Brewnited’s spokesperson and the director of sales and operations for Northway Brewing Co. “Nominate Your COVID Hero is a great way to say thanks to that person while supporting your favorite independent hospitality establishment.”
The new initiative was made possible by donations from individuals as well as from Death Wish Coffee and Ball Corporation, the latter of which officially donated $10,000 to Brewnited at a check presentation held at Northway Brewing on March 23. “We feel that this donation could really have a positive impact on the community by supporting local businesses most impacted by the economic disruption,” said Andrea Miele, Ball Saratoga’s human resources manager.
To date, Brewnited has raised and distributed more than $50,000 for out-of-work service industry employees, with the recent Ball Corp. donation bringing the total amount raised to more than $60,000.
Donations to We Are Brewnited can be made on the nonprofit’s website, wearebrewnited.com.
