Over the years, 3 Nations has become part of a community of beer drinkers that love to give back. We have had numerous memorial services, enjoy dog rescues, have had numerous charity events and support our local food banks and homeless shelters.
Two weeks ago, we had our annual Mug Club signup. We have 250 Mug Club members that pay annually for the privilege to have a mug with their name on it on our wall. Each mug is 20 ounces and we give $1 off per pour. For the math challenged, that is 4 extra ounces for $1 less than the general public. Of course, there are other benefits like breaks on merchandise, a chance to drink new beers before they are launched and even a Holiday Party where we close down to serve our Mug Club Members.
It isn’t easy becoming a Mug Club member. We have little turnover each year. This year, 2022, we had only 45 mugs come open. We set a date and we open the door on a designated Saturday at 10am to welcome the first 45 in line as new Mug Club member. The line started at noon on the Friday before. That means there were a lot of people sleeping out in the heat of the summer all night outside our door to have a chance at a Mug. Crazy? We think so too, but it just makes us want to serve them even more. What a great 3 Nations family we have.
We discovered we had 5 extra mugs at the end. When we looked at the wall, we found 5 places where mugs could go. Instead of adding to the 250 memberships, we decided to raise money for charity. We assigned a local charity to each Mug and bidding started at $200, the annual cost for the Mug Club membership. What transpired next was out of a feel-good movie.
With representatives of the charities on site, we started the auction. There was a silent auction of 4 of the mugs. The charities were Metrocrest Services (Carrollton, Addison and Farmers Branch), Pajamas for Seniors, Cane Rosso Dog Rescue and The Birthday Project Box children’s charity. Before the silent auction portion was over, the mayor of Carrollton, Steve Babick, began the auction to raise money for the last mug whose proceeds went to the Carrollton Police Alumni Association which supports our local police department. Steve was able to raise $1,000 for the mug and had another person who was willing to match the final bid.
When the time was up for the silent auction, we had raised $9,100 in total for local charities. 100% of those proceeds went to the charities. Those of us watching were just in awe of how generous our 3 Nations family are. The feeling of gratitude filled the building. It is something I won’t forget.
Thank you, 3 Nations family, for supporting our charities. We look forward to having you part of our Mug Club in 2022-23.
