FB Group Aims To Help West Michigan Service Industry Employees

With the shutdown of the area bars, dine-in restaurants, and all the live music venues, there are a lot of people who are scrambling to figure out how to make ends meet. Well, you're not alone and there's a community that wants to help. Outside of making sure everyone knows who's still open for take-out, there's now a Facebook group called Grand Rapids Service Industry Network Donations, which has one purpose during the coronavirus shutdown,

This is a community hub where out of work service industry/entertainment people can gather to distribute food and supplies to our fellow workers. If you find yourself in need (food, sanitary supplies, etc.), don’t be afraid to ask. If you have extra to donate please let us know. We’re in this together.

I reached out to one of the creators of the group, Jacob Prell, and asked if I could share this group, in hopes of helping spread the word.  I know it says for service industry peeps helping fellow workers, but these people share a lot of times with us as we enjoy a very active bar, restaurant and live music scene here in West Michigan.  His reply was, Yes, I just want to make sure pantries are filled before more restrictions come along.

He also said that he's already received non-perishable food donations from people outside the industry and there have been a few cash donations through PayPal as well.  He also said plenty of restaurants are helping out too including Chop House, Palio and Flanagan’s, who all donated a lot of fresh produce. He also said there were others that they were coordinating with around the area.

If you're in the industry, definitely join the group and ask for help if you need it. Everyone else, join and help if you can or at least share it for others. If you'd like to make a monetary donation, a GoFundMe has been set up.