Who wouldn’t give $10,000 to help Hardy and Buster?
Two neighborhood shops in need are cautiously optimistic — Is there an anonymous neighbor helping to save Capitol Hill businesses one secret $10,000 gift at a time?
Harvard Ave’s Twice Sold Tales is one recipient. After launching its fundraising appeal to help save the used book shop and a post on CHS, an anonymous $10,000 donor joined more than 100 others to help owner Jamie Lutton leap beyond her goal of “one month’s rent.”
Lutton said the funds are apparently fully legitimate and the GoFundMe platform had started making its incremental payouts to the store. Lutton said businesses running fundraising efforts get the money in small payouts — around 25% at a time.
Broadway candy shop Rocket Fizz also turned to the community for support. After CHS reported on owner Theresa Sindelar and her store’s struggles to stay in business through the COVID-19 crisis, Rocket Fizz, too, got a $10,000 donation. Sindelar’s first payment from GoFundMe isn’t due until next week. Until then, she says she’s hoping for the best.
The Redwood City, California-based GoFundMe has seen demand for its services surge amid the crisis. The growth hasn’t all been happy stories with many small business owners running into challenges and delays providing the necessary financial information to receive payouts. Surprise fees are also an issue. Other platforms are facing similar demand and similar problems.
Meanwhile, Congress is debating a new $310 billion injection into its federal payroll support program and more than 9,000 small businesses applied for $10,000 City of Seattle COVID-19 relief grants.
Beyond Twice Sold Tales and Rocket Fizz, there are dozens more such fundraisers active for businesses across Capitol Hill and the Central District. CHS can’t cover them all. And there probably isn’t a $10,000 anonymous gift available to support them. But let us know what we can do to help in comments below or [email protected].
Many owners are also busy trying to secure grants and loans to make it through. Lutton said so far, no luck for Twice Sold Tales.
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Just remember: Eat the rich and rich people suck and all that. Just ask the folks at Twice Sold Tales!
Yes, lets rely on ocassional good faith of a decent weathy person to help out 2 businesses out of hundreds that are on the verge of closing when this is something the government should be handling.
Genius!
You’ve burnt out your logic board. Finding wholesale hatred of wealthy people to be ridiculous in no way precludes also believing that the government is feloniously asleep at the switch here. Try harder, Gay!