Tales of the Cocktail awards the first Great Bar Race Grants
The Great Bar Race promotes equality, inclusion and representation in the beverage industry. Read more about this year’s grants recipients.
The Tales of the Cocktail Foundation has awarded Turning Tables and the Made in New Orleans Foundation $12,500 in grants to support their initiatives. The foundation is working on this initiative with Grey Goose.
The collaboration between TOTC and Grey Goose was highlighted through the challenge of bartending bar teams in a relay style and their ability to work together. It also showed the diversity within them. During the Foundation’s 2020 grant presentation period, the organization issued a call to action. The audience was asked to submit projects they had been working on that would advocate for change. But also to raise awareness about social justice issues.
For grants, grantee submissions were to support TOTCF’s core mission: to educate, support and advance the global beverage alcohol industry. The foundation said it received an “overwhelming” number of proposals this year. All were evaluated by TOTCF’s grants advisory committee.
“It has been an absolute honor to work with Grey Goose on grants that are core to our mission as a Foundation,” said Caroline Rosen, President of Tales of the Cocktail Foundation. “I have long admired the ways in which Grey Goose has championed representation and inclusivity for our industry and could not think of two better recipients for these grants.”
Made in New Orleans (MiNO)
Photo: Tales of the Cocktail Foundation
MiNO is a non-profit organization. It strives to grow, support and fund black, native and other people of color in the Louisiana City hospitality industry.
The organization provides educational resources, individual mentoring and scholarships. It also provides business training. The grant will fund the Foundation’s Equity Program. It provides practical tools to create unified and equitable work spaces.
“We are so deeply thankful for the support of Tales of the Cocktail Foundation. We are so excited to launch this partnership and create a meaningful impact in the hospitality industry in New Orleans. Because of this grant, MiNO, will be able to forge ahead, especially during this time, this gift means so much more than right now, it contributes to the future we are building together,” said Lauren Darnell, Executive Director of MiNO.
Turning Tables
Photo: Tales of the Cocktail Foundation
For its part, Turning Tables advocates for diversity, visibility, and incusion in the hospitality industry. Specifically, they focus on the underserved and under-represented communities of New Orleans. Through their vision they want to change the face of hospitality: Create a model of equitable access to career paths. They achieve this through hands-on training, mentoring, industry exposure and wrap-around support services.
Turning Tables will apply its funds to its “Grant Program”. But also to promote its mission that advocates for equity in the hospitality industry. They do this by providing mentors, educational tools, and platforms to support and sustain New Orleans’ black and brown communities.
“This industry is extremely resilient and if there is anything I have learned from this past year, Is that the model is changing, but we show up and support one another. The one thing that is certain is that we will be a part of that change and continue to create leaders that will be a valuable asset moving forward. We want to continue to be a bright light and model for all the places we can go and all of the places we can to be a force in creating a more equitable industry,” shared Touré Folkes, CEO of Turning Tables.
To learn more about the grants, visit www.talesofthecocktail.org.
Don’t drink and drive. Enjoy responsibly.
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