'We just felt it would be better to give back'

PACE — The Tin Cow’s general manager, Arian Cook, and kitchen manager, John Claudio, thought the best way to celebrate the restaurant’s first birthday was to raise money for Hurricane Irma relief efforts.

Just weeks after Hurricane Irma impacted many Florida counties, The Tin Cow’s Pace location thought they would take advantage of their anniversary by giving back — the restaurant donated 100 percent of proceeds to those affected by the storm.

“It was coming up on our first anniversary, and we just felt it would be better to give back, since we were one of the few counties in Florida that didn’t get a lot of the storm,” Cook said. “Just to give back to those who did get hit by it.”

Not only will the business donate the funds raised during their birthday celebration, they will also be donating 30 to 40 cases of bottled water. They will donate the money and supplies to Habitat for Humanity, which will transport the contributions to south Florida.

“After cost, we raised about $1,000,” Cook said. “Delta Life and Max Fit are also doing a donation as well. We’re not sure if they’re matching us yet, or if they’re just doing a flat rate donation.”

The spirit of giving runs in the Tin Cow chain, as the Pensacola location on Nine Mile Road will be hosting an event in late October called “Pints for Puerto Rico,” where proceeds will benefit those impacted by Hurricane Maria.

The Pace restaurant is still selling T-shirts with the phrase “Florida Strong” printed on the back. According to Claudio, they were originally sold for $20 during their birthday celebration and came with raffle tickets, but they will likely lower the price.

Many local businesses contributed to their anniversary festivities, including Aloha Inflatables, Phocus Photography by Tim Sewell, Delta Life Fitness, Max Fit Sport Nutrition, Do or Dye Salon, Goldring Gulf Distributing, among others.

This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: 'We just felt it would be better to give back'