FORT WORTH, Texas – Whether stepping up to make hand sanitizer during a viral outbreak or distributing free water to those still feeling the effects of last week's winter blast, the brewery and distillery community keeps finding a way to open its doors when Texans need it the most.
From San Antonio to North Texas, distilleries and breweries began opening their doors for those who needed help as early as Tuesday, February 16. In Fort Worth some owners allowed their breweries to serve as warming centers for the homeless before transitioning into water resource havens.
"We had it open as a warming center for a couple of days, and then we started seeing posts of people not having water, and then the boil water notice," said Macy Moore, owner of HopFusion Ale Works. "That same day, we realized we had captured all this water, let's just give it out."
Moore, along with a coalition of other brewery and distillery owners, first began passing out water alongside the Fort Worth Fire Department. Residents impacted by burst pipes and boil water notices filled up on more than 5,000 gallons of water alone from HopFusion. More than a week after the storm, though, breweries like Cowtown Brewery are still serving free water to those who need it.
"Our breweries are engraved in the communities that we are a part of; we depend very much on those communities for our success," said Shawn Kidwell, owner of Cowtown Brewing Company. "We view our establishment as community gathering places."
Despite the staggering setback COVID-19 has put on the food and beverage industry, brewery and distillery owners in Texas are still finding a way to give back to their community.
"Water is easy for us. That's what we make our living with," said Kidwell. "It's not easy all the time, and as much as we think about philanthropy and wanting to give back, when you're trying to survive yourself it's not always an easy decision to make, but this one was very easy. We had it available. The community was in need. It was a no-brainer."