Beer and Benefits

Including the health benefits of beer - as told in this space in a previous piece - our malted friend and its makers offer other positives for business and the community.

Local breweries worth their trub know they are beholden to their local customer base for survival. Providing beer or gift certificates to their brewpub for fundraisers is a classic way brewers give back to the community.

I witnessed one example of such giving recently with the donation of significant quantities of ale to aid in raising funds for a community garden group. Supporting an opportunity for those not fortunate enough to own land - low-income renters, for example - the Great Dane Brewery gave some of their top tap beer behind the preservation, promotion and propagation of community gardens, Madison, Wisconsin's Midvale Gardens. 120+ people came out onto Hilldale Mall's Sundance Rooftop to back the cause, listening to live music from the revival band RetroBox.

Midvale Gardens is an area set aside by the enlightened City of Madison for the community to be self-sufficient. An opportunity to grow food to supplement the diets and budgets of families, hard work in the spring and summer results in bountiful harvests - put up, canned or frozen -- to be enjoyed throughout the fall and winter. Tending plots throughout the season, sharing common tasks and costs, and governing collectively, community gardens are as 'small-d-democratic' as it gets.

I think special thanks should go to event organizers and key figures: Nancy Gutknecht, Rachel Martin and filmmaker Georgia Lyon. Also, the works of artist/welder Erika Koivunen, provider of Midvale's metal garden gates, must be recognized.

As a member of the band RetroBox, one benefit I reaped from the experience was to once again have the opportunity to play music well and to have fun with friends. I also absorbed the beauty of the City of Madison, the verdant lawns, the tree-filled hillsides, the open minds, and the coming together of community.

I drank some really good beer as well.

Yes, pairing beer and benefits certainly does have its benefits.