Utica’s Be a Neighbor Fund awards final grant to Irwin’s Fine Food

UTICA, N.Y. — Irwin’s Fine Food of Utica will use a $3,000 grant from the Greater Utica Be a Neighbor Fund.

Irwin’s represents the “fifth and final” business to receive grant money from the fund. The award will be disbursed in $1,000 installments over three months, per a news release about the grant award.

Located at 240 Genesee St. in Utica, Irwin’s Fine Food is open weekdays for lunches and is known for its cookies and catering.

The partners involved in the Be A Neighbor Fund on April 8 “surprised” Irwin’s Fine Food owner Linda Irwin with the grant. Irwin looks forward to the future, saying “I love being in downtown Utica and feel that it’s worth sticking it out. I see good things happening in Utica and I really would like to continue to be a part of it.”

Irwin’s Fine Food has had its “costs increase vastly” in the past year. The restaurant had a “tremendous drop” in revenue due to reduced capacity, remote workers, and catering that has “all but stopped” due to restrictions on numbers allowed at events.

Those factors contributed to an approximate decline in revenue of $21,000, per the news release.

The Be A Neighbor Fund is a joint project of Universal Bookkeeper, Made In Utica and McGrogan Design under the nonprofit Handshake.City.

The fund raised money through community donations and corporate contributions to distribute awards to locally-owned businesses that have had revenue-generation difficulties due to pandemic restrictions.

The fund’s organizers considered 37 applications and 80 nominations. Recipients were chosen based on factors such as financial need, longevity, community involvement, and public nominations.

Since launching Feb. 1, the fund raised more than $27,000 and provided financial awards to five local businesses. Besides Irwin’s Fine Food, the Be A Neighbor Fund recipients included Cafe Domenico, Mello’s Subs, Bodywise Pure Pilates, and Simmer Jamacian Restaurant.

The three local companies got together back in January, hoping to figure out a way to help other small businesses that were struggling due to COVID-19. The Be A Neighbor Fund resulted from their discussion.

First Source Federal Credit Union of New Hartford sponsored the Be A Neighbor Fund Award for Irwin’s Fine Food. Tom Neumann, president and CEO of First Source, said providing this funding was an “easy decision.”

“[Irwin’s Fine Food is] a staple in Utica, being in business for over 20 years! Known for their cookies, and family atmosphere, it would be unfortunate to lose a business like this. We really wanted to help and are so glad we are able to provide this grant,” Neumann said.