Originally published in the Monadnock Shopper News
This month, The Local Crowd (TLC) Monadnock launched a brand new crowdfunding initiative called TLC 4WARD. The goal: Empowering you to support the local businesses that you don't want to live without. TLC 4WARD provides participating locally owned businesses with the needed funds to weather the COVID-19 crisis, meet changes in community needs and seize new opportunities to forward a more local, green and fair economy in our region.
"This is an unprecedented time -- one we could not have imagined even six months ago," shared Diane Sontum, TLC co-founder. "Yet, what we imagine today gives us the power to change the world of tomorrow into one we want for ourselves, our children, our neighbors and the planet that sustains us."
We recently launched TLC 4WARD with four locally owned businesses. Each has a different story to tell.
As demand for local products increased in response to COVID-19, Mark Florenz of Archway Farm in Keene added more offerings to his self-serve farm store, like Edgefield Farm lamb, Crooked Creek Farm eggs and Frisky Cow gelato. He’s also close to adding his pasture-raised chickens to the store’s inventory. These additional local products require more storage space, so he installed new display freezers and a refrigerator. Now, this new infrastructure requires an upgrade to the farm store’s electric service.
Help Archway Farm move 4WARD!
Due to COVID-19, demand for curbside pick-up soared at Monadnock Food Co-op in Keene. To quickly meet this need, the co-op launched a pilot curbside pick-up program for seniors and people at risk. And the orders came in! Now, their biggest obstacle is finding enough refrigerated space to store these orders until pick up. They’d like to invest in a refrigerated trailer to allow them to continue offering this vital service. This trailer will also help them out immensely during the Thanksgiving season and Truckload events. They turn to our community to help them cover a portion of the cost of this trailer. Your support will help them keep curbside pick-up available now and into the future.
Help Monadnock Food Co-op move 4WARD!
Every Tuesday night in the summer, Noah Elbers and his team at Orchard Hill Breadworks in Alstead welcome a few hundred individuals to their place. They come for one thing: delicious, wood-fired pizza. You build your own pie and they bake it for you in their outdoor oven. Each week, 100% of the profits go to different local non-profit organizations. This year, however, Orchard Hill Breadworks must do things differently.
While they can't invite hundreds of people into their space to make their own pizzas, they can offer take-away pizzas, made by their hard-working team and baked in their wood-fired oven, available every Tuesday from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., until August 25, 2020. Each night will still support a local non-profit, but they want their take-away pizzas to lend a hand in additional ways.
Small dairy farms and artisan cheesemakers have been hit hard by the pandemic. Orchard Hill would love to support these businesses by featuring their products on their pizzas this year -- without transferring this increased cost onto all customers or cutting into what they donate.
Help Orchard Hill Breadworks move 4WARD!
When Prime Roast closed their Main Street coffee shop in Keene due to COVID-19, owner Judy Rogers shifted their business to delivering their freshly roasted beans exclusively by mail order. They experienced an overwhelming demand for local bean delivery. Instead of mailing these beans, they wanted to find a way to keep our community caffeinated through in-person roaster-to-home deliveries.
Thinking outside the box, they launched “BySpoke - Beans by Bike,” a doorstep delivery service. They now deliver their coffee beans with a new electric bike, named Iris, to customers who order online and live locally. Iris helps them connect with our amazing coffee community and allows for reduced packaging and a smaller environmental footprint. As demand for BySpoke - Beans By Bike continued to grow, they needed a back-up battery for Iris. With your support, they can keep Iris rolling and our community caffeinated.
Help Prime Roast Coffee Roasters move 4WARD!
There are several ways to support these businesses through TLC 4WARD. One is to give a contribution -- click on the green button on our page to get started. Then, click on the businesses you'd like to support.
If you prefer to give "offline," please make your check out to Monadnock Food Co-op (with the business you're supporting in the memo line) and mail it to Jen Risley, Monadnock Food Co-op, TLC 4WARD, 34 Cypress St., Keene, NH 03431.
Another way to support our campaign is to claim a reward in exchange for your contribution. Rewards for our campaign include a $10 gift card from the Monadnock Food Co-op or CC&D's Kitchen Market, a $25 gift card from Cheshire Garden, and a 30-minute massage at Mudita Massage. For more information, visit this page and scroll down to Rewards. These rewards are limited, so be sure to check them out today.
While we launched TLC 4WARD with four locally owned businesses, we invite others to join. Please share this opportunity with others -- businesses that you don't want to live without.
Let’s move 4WARD together!
The Local Crowd Monadnock - Keene, NH
