The Mancos Brewing Co. hosted its seventh Summer Brewfest on Saturday, bringing residents together while raising money for local nonprofits.
When the event first began back in 2015, the goal was to bring people together at the newly opened brewery on the edge of town.
“As a new business, we wanted to signal that we wanted to be part of the community and provide support however we could,” said Kathy Hands, the owner of Mancos Brewing Co.
“It’s not about promoting ourselves anymore,” said Hands. “It’s really just about trying to bring the community together and support a local group.”
This year, the event supported Mancos Valley Resources, as it always does, since it’s an umbrella nonprofit that subsidizes many smaller groups. They also chose to support one of its projects, Mancos FoodShare.
“I’m so thankful for Kathy, she’s my hero,” said Nicole Halladay, a co-director of Mancos FoodShare.
The FoodShare had a booth in the parking lot, along with Mancos Valley Resources, the event’s sponsors, a henna artist, a stone and beaded jewelry maker and, of course, brews.
“We hope it’s successful,” said Jen Magnuson from the Mancos Valley Chamber of Commerce and Mancos Trails Group, two Brewfest sponsors.
“We’re most excited to raise money for the FoodShare and Mancos Valley Resources. They (MVR) support so many groups in the area,” Magnuson said.
Hands said she keeps the overhead low so a lot of local groups can afford to be sponsors and feel like they’re doing some good for the community.
“You don’t need to pay me $2,000 to help support the event just so you can get your name on the cup … $500 is good,” Hands said.
People exchanged tokens for beer or cider from Mancos Brewing Co., WildEdge Brewing Collective, Dolores River Brewery, Anarchy Brewing Co. and Fenceline Cider.
Throughout the afternoon, three local bands took a turn on the stage.
Alex Westphal and the Blues Quartet led off the live music at 2 p.m., followed by Farmington Hill at 4 and Little Wilderness at 6 p.m.
As the day wore on, more people got up and out of their seats to dance.
Women in flowing skirts and eccentric earrings swayed to the sounds of music. A few dogs wandered around the gravel courtyard while kids played at Mancos Public Library’s activity booth.
One person started cutting a rug during Farmington Hill’s set, and encouraged several others to join in on the dance floor.
Inside the brewery, a silent auction went on, made possible by community members who offered up goods and services. The auction ends up adding a few thousand extra dollars to the fundraiser, Hands said.
“We missed a few years with COVID. For me, it’s just a great way to support some groups that really do a lot of good in our community,” said Hands. “It’s fun to raise money and have fun.”
