Franklin Park Fun(ds)

Friends, neighbors, regulars and (hopefully) beyond: 

Franklin Park had to close its doors last Sunday, 3/15 for the safety of not only our staff, but for the community at large, and we will not be opening for take-out for those very same reasons. We haven't had to do anything like this in our 12 years of operating, and as you can probably imagine, our staff is left in a compromising position.  Some are parents, caretakers, or plainly living paycheck to paycheck and will not be able to survive on what little they have— let alone provide for the ones they love. 

No one saw this pandemic coming with enough time for proper preparation, and now our 35 person staff is looking to you for any kind of support. We realize it's a lofty goal, but with the amount of people on staff, and what is normally made, we hope to be able to distribute what would be up to 3 weeks pay for our entire staff (excluding ownership). 

Thank you in advance for any support received. 

P.S. The staff is hard at work planning our opening bash— those who have donated via Venmo will automatically have a ticket. Anyone who includes their name with their donation will be put on a list for said event. We will have more info on this as it develops!

~ Elyssa & Paige

From Paige: 

As you know, 2020 has been one wild ride— and we're not even through March.  We're coming to you (yes you) today from Franklin Park (or the couch of one staff member binging Veronica Mars and drafting this letter for the fifth time) to ask for your continued support as we roll into what would be our busy season. 

These people I met a mere four years ago have become my family and some of my best friends. Hell, all of my roommates and my partner are my coworkers. I've traveled with these people, I've confided in them— and most importantly, they accepted me the moment they met me. Something you can't fein— and a feeling of home that I haven't had anywhere else. 

Outside of the immediate family of Franklin Park that I miss, is Franklin Ave, where the rest of the community flocks to. Be it the boys of Barboncino, or the crew at Breukelen Coffee, our super Dave, or our right hand man Ed— I miss the day to day nuances that come with being on that strip. 

I can't wait for my first Saturday back behind the bar so I can stand across from some of my favorite conversationalists and make the most extra looking Bloody Mary's Crown Heights has ever seen. 

Much Love,
Paige 
Manager/Bartender/Resident Bloody Mary enthusiast 













Below, some members of staff wanted to express their gratitude to our community:

From the original Bartender of the Apocalypse:

I keep reading that it’s best to try to hold onto your daily routine when in quarantine. While I’m sure this is extremely hard for everyone stuck at home right now, it’s impossible for
bartenders and service industry workers. Our jobs are by definition social, the opposite of quarantine. Missing just one weekend of work, I can already feel how hard it is to lose the
social workspace where we go to be in the present with each other. When you’re behind a busy bar, anything you were worried about earlier in the day seems to disappear. Bartending is a job where you need to be in a rhythm and at peace with all sorts of competing
personalities around you. To make tips you need to be able to find connection after connection with strangers. Working like this for years, as every bartender at Franklin Park has, creates a lot of strong bonds. That’s between the staff, and between staff and customers.

We joke a lot about some people’s habits that drive us crazy (myself probably more than any) but in the end being behind a bar and juggling all these different influences is who we are.
We’re good at it for a reason. It pays pretty well because it is not an easy thing to do, and it’s also not an easy thing to up and loose overnight either. I mean losing the pay, but also losing
the workplace, the community on Franklin Ave. Many of us have other projects we’ve been trying to get off the ground during our days off. I know that’s were my earnings have been going. Most of us don’t have savings. A lot of us don’t have health insurance. A lot of us have
debt. Some of us have been living check to check the entire time you’ve known us. The first warm days of Spring are supposed to be when we make our best money, after a slow Winter. It’s not the case this year. It hurts to lose work, that goes for any industry right now, and it hurts a whole extra layer being stuck at home when your work is a social one.

Thank you for any support!

I hope everyone is well out there. Be patient. I miss you Franklin Ave. ~James





No_Hallelujah’s very own Alaina:

hellllllooooo everyone from self-quarantine!!! my names alaina, and i’ve worked at franklin park for the past 5 years!  phewf. recently we’ve all, as a staff, been talking together about how franklin park has always been like a second home for us. i’ve done some thinking, and i think it may be more of a first home for me. my home. this past weekend, like sooooo many of us, my home had to close for the foreseeable future. we’re all sad and scared and lonely, and now we’re without a paycheck too. we have a pretty big staff, a close one that has been together and growing the entire time i’ve been there. and we all could use help! 1$, 5$, anything! imagine i’m making you a really good drink right now. you should tip me!! --

A word from Steph:

I’ve been working at Franklin Park for the past 7 years. It was practically my second home. Through Franklin Park, I met so many great people that have become my friends. I met the father of my child at this place. It was 100% how I earned a living and how I was able to support myself as well as my 22 month old(Penny). Any help at all would mean so much to us ♥️




From our dearest Doug (bartender and resident master of the perfect playlist):

Franklin Park has been a Crown Heights institution for 12 years. My 3rd grade picture has been a fixture there since the opening on a wall of a bunch of mutual friends who have a connection to Brooklyn and the bar. I've been bartending for over two decades in Brooklyn, and off an on at Franklin Park for the last seven.  Its almost like working in a oversized  living room with a staff that feels like the coolest parts of a family. I currently have three part time service industry jobs of which Franklin Park is one. While we understand the gravity of what lead to the closure, we definitely feel like we got thrown off the boat without a flotation device. Like most who work as a bartender, server, cook, food runner, kitchen staff or as a security guard, I live month-to-month.  I am completely dependent on the income from this job to survive. Like everyone else that works there, as well as all my brothers and sisters in the service industry in Brooklyn, without this job, I can't survive. It’s as simple as that. Any virtual tip you could send us as we all try to make it through these times will certainly help as we eagerly wait the signal that the coast is clear we’re back. Love + Light!  




From Zacho (server of the people): 

Not only is Franklin park the primary or sole source of income for many of us who work there. But more than that it’s a home and second family to all of us who work together and support each other in a close community 


From Cynthia:

Everything was normal, and then one day I woke up and the Covid-19 virus was a reality. I was aware of the virus and was feeling the same vague insecurity felt by many, but I was still taking the train to work, meeting my friends and co-workers to hangout, having a drink after a long shift, etc. - you know, regular things! It wasn’t until Friday the 13th (of all days!) that it became truly real to me.
That Friday during work, I kept thinking, “Will Franklin close down?” “Am I ready to make ends meet for a while without my paycheck?” Customers were especially nice that day, but I had so many questions in my head. It was all so real now!
I came home that night and my boyfriend asked me, “How was work? What’s going on over there?” We had met at Franklin back when he worked there as well, and he always wanted to know what was going on. You see, we’re all very close friends, everyone who works at Franklin, so there’s usually drama of some kind to report. But that day all I could say was, “It was a good night, I made money. But I don’t know if I’ll have a job tomorrow.”
Franklin closed that Sunday. Now the only drama is that me and my co-workers and friends are all laid off! How’s that for real?
We all understand how scary New York can be when you have no income but still have to pay rent and bills and groceries. We all want to come back to Franklin as soon as it can re-open, but we need to survive until then! Anything you can give to help us is sooo appreciated and will go a long way! Thanks for being there for us, cheers and stay safe!