Viridian Fundraiser
Don protégé
On Tuesday, February 4th, Viridian finally opened its doors to a very expectant Bay Area. After months of sleepless nights, 20 hour days, and a flurry of rapid construction, we were proud to be able to offer up the fruits of our labor: an Oakland bar with Oakland roots providing delicious dim sum snacks and fun desserts paired with a bangin' drinks menu.
The response was overwhelming. People were coming from all over the Bay Area to check out Viridian, and every day seemed unreal. Never in our wildest imaginations did we anticipate the success and positive responses we were garnering. The future was looking very bright, indeed. As first time business owners, we were so excited that a concept that had come from so deep within our hearts was connecting with our community.
Barely a month and a half into our open, a shelter-in-place order was issued across California to prevent the spread of COVID-19, and all non-essential businesses, including Viridian, were mandated to shutdown. In the interest of public health and safety, we are happy to do what we can to contribute to this effort. We join in solidarity with you, in the interest of the general well-being of all.
However, being such a young business, we had no substantial reserves saved up yet to prepare for such an economic downturn as this. As such, all of our staff are now effectively unemployed. Many of them have spent most or all of their careers in the bar and restaurant industry. Their options for finding employment elsewhere, at this time, is slim to none. They are not only our employees, but they are our friends, some of our inner circle, who stepped out on a limb to become a part of the Viridian family because they believed in us. We have emptied out the last of our own reserves to ensure they were paid for the most recent pay period, but starting this week, we are at a loss as to how we can or if we can continue to support them through this crisis.
If you have ever been in Viridian and enjoyed our food, our drinks, our space, our lighting, and/or our service, we humbly ask for a donation, of any amount, to support our staff and reopen our doors once again in the future.
Thank you to everyone for your kindness and empathy during this time. Every day we hold on to hope because of your encouragement and unfailing support.
Photos: Jeremy Chiu
The response was overwhelming. People were coming from all over the Bay Area to check out Viridian, and every day seemed unreal. Never in our wildest imaginations did we anticipate the success and positive responses we were garnering. The future was looking very bright, indeed. As first time business owners, we were so excited that a concept that had come from so deep within our hearts was connecting with our community.
Barely a month and a half into our open, a shelter-in-place order was issued across California to prevent the spread of COVID-19, and all non-essential businesses, including Viridian, were mandated to shutdown. In the interest of public health and safety, we are happy to do what we can to contribute to this effort. We join in solidarity with you, in the interest of the general well-being of all.
However, being such a young business, we had no substantial reserves saved up yet to prepare for such an economic downturn as this. As such, all of our staff are now effectively unemployed. Many of them have spent most or all of their careers in the bar and restaurant industry. Their options for finding employment elsewhere, at this time, is slim to none. They are not only our employees, but they are our friends, some of our inner circle, who stepped out on a limb to become a part of the Viridian family because they believed in us. We have emptied out the last of our own reserves to ensure they were paid for the most recent pay period, but starting this week, we are at a loss as to how we can or if we can continue to support them through this crisis.
If you have ever been in Viridian and enjoyed our food, our drinks, our space, our lighting, and/or our service, we humbly ask for a donation, of any amount, to support our staff and reopen our doors once again in the future.
Thank you to everyone for your kindness and empathy during this time. Every day we hold on to hope because of your encouragement and unfailing support.
Photos: Jeremy Chiu
Équipe de collecte de fonds : Viridian (3)
William Tsui
Organisateur
Oakland, CA
Raymond Gee
Team member
Alison Kwan
Team member
