Geneva businesses organize support for fire-damaged Stockholm’s, Pärla

The business community in Geneva is coming together to support a restaurant and retailer that both had fires last month.

Pärla, 122 Hamilton St., had a fire on July 22, and Stockholm’s Restaurant & Brewery, 306 W. State St., had a kitchen fire on July 31.

Craft Urban, 211 James St., is hosting a fundraiser for Stockholm’s and Pärla from 3 to 6 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 14, with raffle prizes.

Up North Wine Tasting Room, 9 N. Second St. is hosting a fundraiser for Stockholm’s from noon to 8 p.m. on Aug. 25, the same day as the Concours d’Elegance classic car show in Geneva’s downtown.

“Tickets are $25, which entitles a person to a glass of wine or beer flight, with 100% of the $25 going to support Stockholm’s, according to an email from co-owner Cathy Humphreys.

Up North is donating the cost of the wine, and Art History Brewing is donating the cost of the beer, according to Humphreys. Raffle tickets will be $5 each, and people can select which prizes they want to win. All of the raffle cash will also go to Stockholm’s, her email stated.

Donations of raffle prizes can be made by dropping them off at Up North, marked for the Up North/Stockholm’s fundraiser.

Also, the Geneva Chamber of Commerce, 8 S. Third St., is collecting raffle prize donations. Donors should mark which business their item is intended to support at which fundraiser, Craft Urban or Up North.

In addition, a GoFundMe account has been set up to support Stockholm’s employees, as the average payroll is $19,000 per week, according to gofundme.com.

“With the restaurant closed and while waiting for payroll insurance to kick in, our staff faces uncertain times ahead in the next few weeks,” Team Stockholm’s stated on the site. “This is why we’re reaching out to our community for support. … Your generosity will provide crucial financial assistance to cover essential living expenses such as housing, groceries, and medical bills until insurance coverage takes over.”

Donations reached $33,155 — past the $25,000 goal as of Wednesday, Aug. 7.

Stockholm’s employee Rebecca Moore said the restaurant has 23 full-time employees.

“We are just blown away,” Moore said. “A few were skeptical, especially when times are tough and you’re putting your hand out and asking, ‘What can you spare?’ That is tough to do.”

Stockholm’s has three married couples who work there, and their primary income is from the restaurant, Moore said.

“We figured we have this insurance to look forward to, but we don’t know when that is going to come through,” Moore said. “And we needed a little something to ease everybody’s mind a little bit — to pay the rent and feed the family in the meantime.”