Have a beer, help a nonprofit.
That’s the idea behind Sip It Forward at Hoptown Brewing Co. in Mooresville, where this year’s program raised a total of $19,524 for a quartet of local charitable organizations.
“Giving back and the whole idea that nonprofits are the backbone of what keeps a community going. A lot of times what keeps the outliers of the community going,” Sandy Plemmons said. She is the director of customer ExBEERience. “We just wanted a nonprofit program to be part of the DNA of the business.”
This year, the Mooresville Christian Mission received $3,122, Cool Kids Clubhouse took in $3,772, Rainbow Kidz took home $6,033, and finally, Rescue Ranch was gifted $6,597.
The Cool Kids Clubhouse opened in Huntersville in December 2019, and was named in honor of Dan Jansen, Cool Kids board member and 1994 Olympic gold medalist speed skater. The goal of Cool Kids is to improve the quality of life and reduce social isolation, sadness and academic loss children with a cancer diagnosis experience.
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Since 1939, The Christian Mission has been a catalyst that empowers the community to become advocates and serve those in need to achieve an improved quality of life. It engages the community to recognize and remove barriers and challenge how society views poverty. Through collaboration with the community, the mission exists to break the cycle of poverty by providing crisis assistance, case management and educational programming.
Rescue Ranch is a humane education center in the heart of Iredell County that provides sanctuary and permanent residency to more than 80 rescued animals. These animals all have a story to share as they came to the Ranch from situations like neglect, hoarding or owner surrender. They are affectionately known as Rescue Ranch’s animal ambassadors and are an integral component of humane education programs. Rescue Ranch’s educational programs incorporate hands-on learning to support its mission of promoting compassion and respect for all animals.
Rainbow Kidz is a pediatric grief program serving the children and youth of the community and is a program of Hospice & Palliative Care of Iredell County. Rainbow Kidz is offered at no cost to families or schools and encompasses an array of services provided by licensed clinical social workers.
Over three years, Sip It Forward raised more than $50,000 for a dozen nonprofits.
Patrons of the Mooresville brewery can buy a glass of Sip It Forward, a blonde ale, and receive a token with their beer. On the brewery’s wall are four containers where the token can be dropped to put $1 toward the charities that participate in the program each year.
People can also buy a token separately to donate.
This year’s nonprofits that will benefit from Sip It Forward are Bridge of Hearts, Piedmont Animal Rescue, Down Syndrome Association of Greater Charlotte and FoodDiversity.
Plemmons said that by having customers take part by buying a beer and selecting which charity gets their donation, it helps not just raise money, but increase awareness for those nonprofits.
While Plemmons said she wasn’t sure if the program would work when they began three years ago, Mooresville Mayor Chris Carney joked that owners Sandra and Scott Plemmons shouldn’t have been surprised by how well it has turned out.
“You mixed great beer and great charities, and you wondered if it would work?” Carney said.