Hops for Hope offers free brew, raises money for Voice of Hope
Wanting to raise awareness on the issue of sexual assault, the Ale-Ian Society brought homebrew to the First Friday Art Trail at "Hops for Hope."
Ale-Ian Society, a local homebrew club in Lubbock, was able to raise $200 for the Voice of Hope Lubbock Rape Crisis Center, as the club offered free samples of its brew.
"The Ale-Ians had a great time, we can't wait to do it again," said Kenneth Castillo, vice president of the Ale-Ian Society.
Making homebrew and working to fight against sexual assault are two of Castillo's passions, he said.
Getting guys to be involved helping work against sexual assault and violence against women is a big challenge, said Castillo, and he thought offering free samples of flavorful homebrew would be a great way to reach people.
Victim blaming is a huge problem, Castillo said, and he was tired of hearing rhetoric that the problem of rape is what women wear instead of men's groups saying not to rape.
Bruce Cammack, who brews with the Ale-Ians, created a Kentucky Common Beer for the event, and said he was pleased with the results of his creation and happy to help the cause.
Erin Pena, who read about "Hops for Hope" on Facebook, said she thought the dark, creamy ale "tasted fantastic." She and a friend wanted to support their cause while checking out the art trail, Pena said.
"We brew together as a group and thought the cause was important enough for us to spend time supporting this," Cammack said.
Brewing can take two months, he said, and he tries to brew a batch every month.
Castillo is planning to do "Hops for Hope" again, and said he is working to do an event later in the year raising awareness against sex trafficking.
Hops for Hope had two locations at the art trail, Tornado Gallery and Culture Clothing. Culture Clothing had a band Friday, and so the Ale-Ians were able to float a couple kegs at the packed event, Castillo said.
Voice of Hope provides free and confidential crisis assistance to victims of sexual abuse and assault.
jordan.sigler@lubbockonline.com
• 766-8742
