Walking Tall
Good Hops Brewing lifts up those in need
E
very couple months, Good Hops Brewing, a craft brewery in Carolina Beach near Wilmington, hosts a community barbecue fundraiser event to help a mobile, missional nonprofit organization in the area that is helping people living in poverty. Walking Tall Wilmington was launched in April 2017 by founder and director Randy Evans. It works toward removing obstacles to supply goods and services to people living in impoverished areas in New Hanover County. One of the major avenues that has helped Walking Tall Wilmington meet the needs of people living in poverty has been the relationships built with local craft breweries in the Wilmington area like Wrightsville Beach Brewery and Wilmington Brewing Co.
By Corey Davis
“If anybody was going to talk about Walking Tall Wilmington, then breweries are going to be synonymous about what we do,” Evans said. “That’s how we got connected with the food trucks in the area. Now, we have several food trucks that donate meals once or twice a month for us. I recognized with the brewery scene in Wilmington before it started to blow up that I could engage with these small businesses and it doesn’t look like I’m jumping on the gravy train. I’ve been invested in these breweries from the beginning.” No brewery has done more for Walking Tall Wilmington than Good Hops Brewing. In March, Walking Tall Wilmington and Good Hops Brewing had their latest partnership and family-friendly event as the Spring BBQ fundraiser supplied barbecue chicken, mashed
26 | Carolina Brew Scene | Summer 2018
potatoes, green beans and other items. In addition, the event featured a live band. Another similar event is scheduled to take place May 27 on Memorial Day weekend. Evans said the events that are held on Sundays have been going on since Good Hops Brewing started operations in 2015 and traditionally have drawn crowds of around 300 people. “When we first did the barbecue on New Year’s Day in 2015, we thought we’re going to have 60 people and ended up having more than 250 people,” he said. Good Hops Brewing goes out of its way to showcase Walking Tall Wilmington’s logo with their logo on pint glasses and cups during the community fundraiser events. Good Hops Brewing is owned by Patricia and Richard Jones.
