Heart of the Valley Homebrewers Fills Linn Benton Food Share’s Cup

For beer lovers in the Willamette Valley, Heart of the Valley Homebrewers’ Septembeerfest is a summer festival staple. The family-friendly festival celebrated seven strong years in Benton County this past September. Community Services Consortium’s (CSC) Linn Benton Food Share (LBFS) also celebrated seven great years of partnership with the festival, which raised $21,000 this year for LBFS to eliminate hunger in Linn and Benton counties.

Patrick Gorman, Septembeerfest event organizer, and
Armand Schoppy, Heart of the Valley Homebrewer member
and CSC Youth Garden teacher, share a toast

The festival has evolved over the years, and started out as a way for the Homebrewers’ club to kill some time between competition judging and award announcements. The first year only made $200, and involved a small group of outside brewers. The festival grew, moved to the fairgrounds, and is now held in September to help ensure good weather for the outdoor event. With 3,100 attendees this year, the festival is bigger and better than ever, and helping more people in the community too.

“Most of the profits from the festival go to Linn Benton Food Share. We wanted to partner with local organizations that provide services to those in need in the area. Linn Benton Food Share was a great fit,” said Patrick Gorman, Septembeerfest event organizer.

The $21,000 donation will go a long way to provide nutritious food to those in need. LBFS depends almost exclusively on community support, which makes it possible for them to gather and distribute over 5 million pounds of food annually through their 74 member network. LBFS keeps overhead costs at around 1%, which is 6.5% less than similar organizations according to Charity Navigator.

“We are extremely happy to be the beneficiaries of Septembeerfest. The Homebrewers are a fun bunch, and how can you beat an event where people have fun drinking good beer, while providing funds to feed people in need? It is this kind of community support that allows our food pantries to provide 50,000 emergency food boxes each year, as well as providing the food needed by our member soup kitchens and shelters to provide an additional 272,000 hot meals.” said Mike Gibson, Director of Linn Benton Food Share.

To support Linn Benton Food Share or any of Community Services Consortium’s poverty-fighting programs and services, visit our website at www.communityservices.us. Donations can be made through our website or mailed to our main office: Community Services Consortium, 245 Broadalbin Street, Suite 2A, Albany, OR 97321.

To support Septembeerfest through sponsorship or to find out more about the festival, visit www.septembeerfest.org.