H.O.P.S., Smoke & Barrel, &

By Matthew J. “Heff” Heffernan

On January 18th, DC’s beer scene made a difference. A big difference. With the support of friends, brewers, and bloggers, H.O.P.S. packed Smoke & Barrel completely full on both floors, for several hours, in support of our planet’s most vulnerable citizens. After the dust settled and the drafts kicked, the event raised over $3,000 for the International Rescue Committee’s Suburban Washington Resettlement Center.

I’ve spent a lot of time in my career trying to pack bars with people, either as a guy running a bar or as a beer salesman trying to fill up an event. To have the greatest level of success toward that endeavor be a time when the dollars were going to end up in the hands of people serving the greater good, that made my heart want to burst with hope for mankind and gratitude for the charity of others. Those good feelings were compounded this week when I finally got to deliver the HOPS funds to IRC’s Suburban Washington Resettlement Center office in Si