PEABODY — During the COVID-19 pandemic, Granite Coast Brewing Company has tapped into a new role: hosting online charity events.
The Peabody brewing company at 77 Main St. is set to host its third Trivia for a Cause game night on the virtual platform Zoom next month, after finding success with its first two online trivia events. In June, the company raised $2,500 and provided more than 6,000 meals for the Greater Boston Food Bank, and on July 16 the second Trivia for a Cause event raised $760 for One Mission Buzz Off, a pediatric cancer charity.
Granite Coast co-owner and Head Brewer Jeff Marquis said the idea to hold trivia events online during COVID-19 came from regular visitors at the brewery.
“When COVID-19 hit us, like every other business, we were hit financially. But we were also hit socially. We miss our guests and spending time with our friends. We wanted to stay connected, but also maybe meet some new friends,” Marquis said.
Marquis said the “great opportunities to give back” came as a result of the trivia games, which cost $10 to participate in and are hosted by the brewery’s staff.
The next Trivia for a Cause event from Granite Coast Brewing Company will be Thursday, Aug. 20 at 8 p.m. To register for the event, which is held using the video conferencing service Zoom, visit www.granitecoastbrewing.com, or visit the company’s Facebook page at www.facebook.com/granitecoastbrewing.
Granite Coast Brewing Company only reopened its tap room on July 17, and right now the tap room is only open on Fridays and Saturdays. However, hours should expand in August, Marquis said.
Amy Luckiewicz, marketing and events manager, said the trivia games have allowed “regulars” to stay connected to the community-oriented brewery, while also introducing new people to the brewery.
“They became regulars, and I like to think that we all became new friends,” she said.
The three “regulars” Kristen Almquist-Cevallos, Amy Mucci, and Chris Mucci were the ones that came up with the idea of a fundraiser, Luckiewicz said.
According to Almquist-Cevallos, Greater Boston Food Bank was chosen for the first game “because it serves the communities that have felt the greatest impact when you look at the effects of the virus.”
During the first event, the idea for the second charity — One Mission Buzz Off — arose.
“At the end of our first fundraiser game, we heard about One Mission Buzz Off from Marc
Filipiak. Marc was playing in our game. He raises money for One Mission by shaving his head and immediately, we were interested in supporting his charity too,” Almquist-Cevallo said.
Timmy’s Angels, the third charity to be benefited by Trivia for a Cause, is a small nonprofit founded in Salem in 2015 and named after Timmy Byrne, who was hit by a car and died at age 11. The nonprofit serves meals at homeless shelters and gives out stuffed “Timmy Bears” to children and adults in need of comfort due to illness or injury.
Multiple people can play the virtual trivia games from one device, Luckiewicz said. Prizes may be given to top teams and generous donors.
