A lot of people are experiencing hardship during the global coronavirus pandemic, but many Loudoun businesses are stepping up to help. From providing free meals, fabric for masks for healthcare workers, and other relief efforts, our community coming together is what makes us proud to call Loudoun home.
Here are just a few examples:
Clyde’s Willow Creek Farm in Ashburn, Va., partnered with Founding Farmers to launch Food it Forward, a platform that helps protect restaurant jobs and provide meals to Virginia residents who are currently experiencing hardship. With their simple three-step buy, support, feed process, you can select from a range of single meals and meal bundles which are then distributed to hospitals, first responders, and people experiencing hunger from the current COVID-10 crisis. This in turn helps keep restaurant workers employed.
Similarly, ResQ BBQ is offering the option to donate meals through their website. All meals are pre-packaged and delivered to INOVA medical staff and local first responders.
Restaurant workers have been overwhelmingly impacted by the shutdown, with more than 80% let go or furloughed in recent weeks. Bear Chase Brewing launched a free pop-up grocery store to people in the restaurant industry, requiring only to see a recent paystub in order to shop and walk out with bags full of free groceries. The food is provided by Sysco Foods, which has a surplus while many restaurants are closed. Learn more about it on their Bear Chase Helps page.
Stone Tower Winery in Leesburg, Va. is partnering with Loudoun Hunger Relief, a nonprofit organization that provides nutritionally balanced meals to families in need. For every bottle of wine Stone Tower Winery sells, they are donating a meal to Loudoun Hunger Relief. If you would like to make a monetary donation, you can do so on Stone Tower’s website here.
While healthcare workers are experiencing a lack of supplies, specifically masks, sewers around the globe are stepping up to provide masks to their local hospitals. If you are interested in contributing, but don’t know how or have the means to sew, you can purchase a yard of fabric from Sew Magarbo in Ashburn, Va. and they will donate the fabric to the Loudoun County Masks for Healthcare Workers Facebook Group.
When Catoctin Creek saw the need for hand sanitizer and sanitizing alcohol, they flipped their operations to serve the community. Originally providing free bottles of sanitizing liquid to local hospitals, police stations and assisted living communities, Catoctin Creek began manufacturing a gel-based hand sanitizer on a large enough scale that could be release to the public. One bottle of hand sanitizer costs $9.49, which covers labor and materials, and any added gratuity will be donated to charity. Visit their website to see when it will be in stock next!
Recently, Visit Loudoun and the Visit Loudoun Foundation launched the Loudoun Tourism & Hospitality Relief Fund, which will provide relief for tourism industry professionals impacted by the shutdowns and furloughs as a result of COVID-19. This program will provide grants to charitable organizations that are providing financial support to individuals and hospitality businesses that are facing hardship.
Ready to help support these businesses that are doing good in the community? Remember to Take Loudoun Home and support the businesses that are supporting the community:
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Photo credit: Bear Chase Helps.
