The uphill climb

Well it's been an interesting week.

First of all, we want to say thank you. Those words do not even do justice to the amount of gratitude we feel for all of you who have so generously donated your hard earned money to help us reach our Kickstarter goal. We chose Kickstarter for this reason, to help the community be a part of what we are doing. This isn't just our brewery, it's yours. YOU are helping to build it. And we are so overwhelmed with emotion when we think about all you have done for us.

Last weekend we were invited to attend the 2nd annual Ameri-CAN Canned Craft Beer Festival in Scottsdale. We were lucky enough to go last year, and it was one of the best festivals we have ever attended. When the promoters invited us this year, we were thrilled. We knew it would not only be a good time, but an amazing opportunity to network with other people in the industry, and also meet many of the people who have been supporting us.

We were blown away. We couldn't make it through a crowd without people stopping us to wish us luck and show their support. Everyone was so excited about the idea of another brewery in town, especially the people we talked to from the west side. Peoria wants more options for craft beer and they are looking to us to help bring it to them.

With every event or opportunity we have to talk to the craft beer community, we get more anxious and excited to make this happen. We know this is what we are meant to do. We know we will be successful. It's just that getting there has been a roller coaster ride.

We have 24 days left to reach our Kickstarter goal. We would be lying if we didn't tell you each day we grow increasingly more nervous. Kickstarter is an all or nothing platform. If we don't reach the goal, we don't get anything. You are not charged and money never exchanges hands. Thankfully we are not relying on the money raised from Kickstarter to start our business. But our time frame to open does depend on having these funds. If we don't reach our goal, it could push our opening back as much as 6 months.

We realize Kickstarter is not your average way to raise funds for a new venture. It's unusual. Some people think it's just plain wrong. And we respect that. But the current economy forces people like us to come up with alternative and creative ways to raise funds. It's rough out there. People need every dime they make to help provide basic needs for their families. It's a lot to ask friends, family and total strangers to donate money so you can open a business. We realize we aren't feeding a third world country or curing some horrible illness.  We're making beer.

But we are creating a sense of community. We are providing an opportunity for people to band together to make something good and positive happen. And all that generosity you have shown us, we will pour right back into this community. We are creating jobs. We are creating a place for people to come and eat and drink and visit with their neighbors. And we will support this community through our own hard work and charitable donations.

If you have already supported us, we are indebted to you. We humbly thank you for believing in us. We promise to make you proud. All we ask is that you share our story and our goal with your friends and family. Tell everyone you know about the passion we have for making this happen. Share the Kickstarter link. Spread the word. Let's make this happen.

Help us make Mischief.