Fundraisers, beer, food

I’m in the beginning stages of trying my hand again at a beer dinner this fall to benefit Lou Gehrig’s Disease research, a cause I am personally dedicated to and have raised money for several times. This summer marks the 5th anniversary of my father’s death at the hands of this disease so I wanted to do something that I think he’d be interested in this time, which obviously is great beer and great food.

I go to a small liberal arts school whose president has made the case before and recently to lower the drinking age to 18. With this dinner I want to do something I think my dad would love and that would educate college students about beer and drinking well in company (aka not beer bonging). My idea is a raffle that sells tickets as the biggest way to create donation money and then draw at random 10 people who then may bring a friend - so I’d be cooking for 20 (not a problem) and pairing beer with the menu and it would be held on campus.

Ideally I’d like to get the microbreweries nearest me to donate brews or beer geer for the event, which include:

Columbus Brewing Co.
Elevator Brewing Co.
Great Lakes Brewing Co.
Buckeye Brewing Co.
Jackie-Os Pub and Brewery
Weasel Boy Brewing Co.
Cellar Rats Brewery
Barleys Brewing Co.

Does anyone have an particular expertise in this area or know of people I should approach at these breweries or in this area? Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Here is the non-profit org I donate all proceeds to:
http://www.projectals.org/

Thanks again!
Pipper
http://ahoppypipper.wordpress.com/

Just call them. Tell them what you typed (expound upon it when they ask), and offer to talk to them face-to-face if need be. Tell them where we are located, and run it by Nuggent. Its such a small group (20 people) that I am sure any brewery would donate a 12 pack for a good cause (especially if you credit them in some newspaper writeup or something along those lines). The Market also carries some really nice beers and would certainly donate a few.

P.S. No brewery is going to openly supply underage drinkers, so be sure to NOT mention that part. How is this raffle going to work? Where will it be held (BM is fine).

P.P.S. if you are speaking to the breweries nearby, you might want to go a bit outside Columbus, considering there are some other great and not-too-far resources: Hoppin Frog, Great Lakes, Rock Bottom, etc.

You may also want to check on state laws. In most states, a brewery or wholesaler can only donate beer if there is some sort of special event license. While they are easy to obtain, they usually can only be obtained by the actual 501(c)3 organization that will benefit from the event. Obviously it would be illegal for you to actually serve anybody under age, as it would be illegal for the university to permit you to do so if you were holding the event on campus. If you are going to attempt this without obtaining any needed license, or otherwise outside the law (underage drinkers), you may want to keep it far under the radar. I am not familiar with your state laws or how aggresive the liquor board is, but any publicity may draw their attention and neither you, nor the breweries that would be involved will want to risk the fine that would come with an unlicensed event serving underage drinkers.

Originally posted by AZeagle
You may also want to check on state laws. In most states, a brewery or wholesaler can only donate beer if there is some sort of special event license. While they are easy to obtain, they usually can only be obtained by the actual 501(c)3 organization that will benefit from the event. Obviously it would be illegal for you to actually serve anybody under age, as it would be illegal for the university to permit you to do so if you were holding the event on campus. If you are going to attempt this without obtaining any needed license, or otherwise outside the law (underage drinkers), you may want to keep it far under the radar. I am not familiar with your state laws or how aggresive the liquor board is, but any publicity may draw their attention and neither you, nor the breweries that would be involved will want to risk the fine that would come with an unlicensed event serving underage drinkers.

Thanks for the help! I should clarify that no one underage would be drinking, I just thought it would be a good example of responsible drinking on campus that made aid the debate.

A HUGE THANK YOU to Corey at Rozi’s, Buckeye Brewing Co., Thirsty Dog and Hoppin’ Frog for their over-the-top generosity!!! I can’t express my appreciation enough. Ohio at its best.

It was nice to meet you at Hoppin Frog!

We would be interested in attending your dinner so let us know the details when you get them...

I lost my father too six years ago...Just did the Heart Walk today in his honor...

Originally posted by BeerVirgin72
It was nice to meet you at Hoppin Frog!

We would be interested in attending your dinner so let us know the details when you get them...

I lost my father too six years ago...Just did the Heart Walk today in his honor...