04/11/2023
GOFUNDME UPDATE
My birthday is coming up I’ll be 49. It seems wild I certainly don’t feel 49 at heart. Anyone that knows me knows I love to tip big. I like leaving a tip that will make a server smile. On my birthday I love nothing more than going out to a big meal with friends ordering tons of food and sharing with everyone. Then I like to leave a tip that makes the server blush.
I have done the math and it will cost $16000 to health insure Bruce, myself and 2 of our last remaining staff members. The third still has insurance through her parents.
My birthday is April 24 and on that day I will be transferring the funds to our account to pay the bill. Anything above and beyond that will be split equally between Bruce, K1, K2 and C.
They were the ones that worked themselves to the bone for the last 3 weeks of operation trying to serve our customers when we were all stretched to our absolute limits. When I called each one of them to tell them that we were throwing in the towel offered to work more and as we talked about possibilities came to the realization that no matter how hard they tried it was an impossible task.
We were able to pay them for the week off that Bruce had Covid and then I told them all to apply for unemployment. None of them wanted to and even though the job market seems wide open I counseled them to take a little time to find the place that is the right fit.
K1 wants to put her degree to use in the cannabis industry. She is searching for the right opportunity with a Maine grower that is emphasizing organic and medicinal herb. She joined our team 2 weeks before the pandemic started and we had to have everyone go on employment until we got our first PPP loan. She even came off unemployment which was going to pay an extra $600 a week to go on our payroll until we reopened because she trusted us and wanted to work with us. She is trustworthy, hardworking and funny. The artist behind the “Dorse” that graced our walls for the last year.
C is looking forward to starting a career in organic farming-but only one that doesn’t raise animals for meat. She loves plants and the outdoors and should have quit us long ago but held on through thick and thin. When we were delivering food to cars at the height of the pandemic she was quite
often the nimble figure weaving between cars to deliver your meals.
K2 has only been with us for a year or so.
She too is exploring her options thinking about banking or continuing in food service which has always been her life. She is also going to need a little extra time between jobs to help her grandmother Up North transition from her home to an apartment. K2 has been the brightly shining young woman taking your orders. She is organized, fun and always working her hardest. When I went into the hospital she helped to hold the business together in my absence.
Bruce is hoping to train up the next team of burrito makers and then explore his options. For the last 3 years he has been watching the efforts of World Central Kitchen and has felt the itch to travel and feed people that are in desperate need. To use his talent at organizing and cooking with what is available to really help people. I know that he will achieve that goal and more.
As for me I’ve missed you all so much and I will always treasure the years that we were a part of your families. My plans are fulfilling my life long dream of being a writer whether memoirist or novelist. My body will never be able to physically work again but my mind is going faster than ever.
This will be my last appeal. I am already overwhelmed at our community’s generosity. Think of it as if you had known it was the last tip you would be throwing into our karma jar.
