Katherine Munson had no idea she and her husband Ryan might win a $10,000 grant for their pizzeria and apothecary, Munson and Brothers Trading Post. She wasn’t even sure they would apply.
“It was weighing on me,” she said. “I had a million things to do, but I was like, you know, what if I got this $10,000? Wouldn’t that be something?”
She turned in the application in March, and on Tuesday, they finally heard back. Munson and Brothers qualified for a Backing Small Businesses grant to use for updating the restaurant.
The Backing Small Business grant program started in 2021, through a partnership with Main Street America and American Express, as a way to support small businesses recovering from the pandemic. This year, 500 businesses were awarded a $10,000 grant through the program.
The program specifically supports under-resourced small businesses with community reach. Businesses with community reach are intentional about developing core values and a business model that supports their communities, the program website reads.
Ryan told The Dispatch half of the grant is earmarked to update the air conditioning in the building, while the other half will go towards updating the restaurant’s outdoor pizza kitchen, adding new barstools, countertops and paint.
“It’s like we get to hit fast forward,” he said. “So the plans that we were hoping to get done this year, we might be able to get done in the next couple of months. And then we can start focusing on the next phases.”
Munson and Brothers’ core values have always focused on tapping into local resources to bring people together, Katherine told The Dispatch.
“Our goal is to invest in the community with our partnerships with people, like Main Street and the Arts Council, and do activities that bring people together,” she said. “So many people we know have met here. Lifelong friendships have been made here, and that’s always been our mission.”
The Munsons learned about the grant through Main Street Columbus, as Executive Director Barbara Bigelow shared it with the restaurant owners.
“Any opportunities that we have or suggestions that come from a lot of sources, we try to feed it out (to businesses),” Bigelow said. “We are so pleased that Munson and Brothers took the initiative to apply for this grant and more excited that they have been awarded $10,000 to enhance their fabulous business and property. They have been a tremendous downtown partner, and we are fortunate to have them and their innovative, unique contributions in our community.”
Ryan said he hopes to have all of the updates completed within the next month. Then the Munsons can apply to a second part of the program, which awards an additional $30,000 Enhancement Grant to 25 of the businesses that received the initial award.
Receiving the award, Ryan said, felt energizing. He said he is excited to finish the projects and move forward to the next thing.
“Anytime you do make a little extra, it’s always how do we get the most of it? How can everybody benefit?” he said. “It’s so fun when we invest in something like the (outdoor pizza kitchen), and then we have a good night and see everybody enjoying the facilities.”
McRae is a general assignment and education reporter for The Dispatch.
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Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 35 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
