Half Moon Bay Brewing Company Committed
to Community

July 3, 2008

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The Half Moon Bay Brewing Company opened its doors in 2000, after a group of longtime friends saw the need to create a warm, family-friendly restaurant in which locals and visitors alike could celebrate the many pleasures of the San Mateo coast. Since its inception, the Brewing Company has not only served the coast’s finest California Coastal Cuisine and hand-crafted beers to more than one million hungry locals and tourists, but has also become a role model business dedicated to giving back to the community and maintaining a strong environmentally-friendly stance – per the guidance, hard work and passion of its owners.

A core value for all the Brewery owners is giving back to the community. During the past eight years, the collective owners have had the pleasure and ability as a business to donate their time, services and tens of thousands of dollars to causes that they are passionate about personally and to coastside organizations that truly need the assistance.

All of the Brewing Company’s owners value the importance of education for all within the community and donate time to education causes. Half Moon Bay Brewing Company Co-owners Lenny and Christine Mendonca in particular, have been committed to education on the state, regional and local level for years. Christine Mendonca played an integral role in the creation of the Cabrillo Education Foundation and its Endowment Fund. She has been involved with the local public schools in various capacities since 1993.

Furthering the commitment to education, the Brewery owners created an annual scholarship program for graduating seniors at Half Moon Bay High School. Each year, the Brewing Company donates $10,000 in scholarships to graduating seniors, some working at the Brewery, and other in-need students at the school’s discretion.

Lenny Mendonca is not only involved on the local level, but also within the larger Bay Area region. He is currently the Chairman of the Bay Area Council, as well as on the board of The New America Foundation, Common Cause, ChildrenNow, DonorsChoose, and The California Business for Educational Excellence Foundation. He is also a trustee for the Committee for Economic Development, a member of The Advisory Council for the Stanford Graduate School of Business and a member of the Alliance for the San Francisco Unified School District.

On the environmental front, the Half Moon Bay Brewing Company recently became the San Mateo County Coast’s first ‘green” certified business. The Brewery teamed up with the County of San Mateo, PG&E, the Bay Area Green Business Program and the Coastside County Water District to obtain the certification from the Bay Area Green Business Program, which recognized the Brewery’s commitment to helping the environment by conserving energy and water, eliminating waste, pollution prevention and using resources more proficiently.

The Brewing Company has implemented a number of practices to benefit the environment since it opened (and will continue to do so), such as adhering to the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seawatch Program by using replenishable food and non-endangered fish (wild when possible); recycling more than 200,000 pounds of spent grain from the brewing process; using ENERGY STAR equipment; and donating 300,000 pounds of used cooking oil for use in a fleet of biodiesel trucks.

The San Mateo County Farm Bureau and San Mateo County Convention and Visitors Bureau recently awarded the Half Moon Bay Brewing Company with its second “San Mateo County: As Fresh as it Gets” Platinum Award, recognizing the Brewery’s commitment to buying and serving goods and produce from local San Mateo County farmers and seafood caught off San Mateo County’s coastline.

Another environmental cause important to the owners is preserving open space in the area and Half Moon Bay Brewing Company’s Co-owners John Dicker and Mark Haynes lead this charge, sitting on the board for the Coastside Land Trust (formerly Half Moon Bay Open Space Trust).

Half Moon Bay Brewing Company Co-owner Mike Laffen plays a major role in the environmental efforts, having served on the board for the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary program. Laffen is also a Coastside Family Medical Center board member and recently started a program to hire special needs students for on-site job training to provide a caring environment for developmentally challenged students to fine tune their job skills.

The Brewing Company also plays an active role in several local events and fundraisers, helping to raise much needed funds for local non-profit organizations and community services such as the Boys & Girls Club of the Coastside and the Coastside Family Medical Center. It is proud to help sponsor numerous local events such as the Half Moon Bay Art & Pumpkin Festival, Pacifica Fog Fest, Pacific Coast Dream Machines and other events that benefit local causes. For example, its sponsorship and involvement with Pacific Coast Dream Machines helps raise funds for the Coastside Adult Day Health Center and the Half Moon Bay Art & Pumpkin Festival supports the Half Moon Bay Beautification Committee which provides needed money to dozens of local charities.

The owners also encourage all management and staff members to be involved in the community as well. For instance, Half Moon Bay Brewing Company's Director of Marketing and Sales Wayne Meyer sits on the board of the Half Moon Bay Chamber of Commerce, San Mateo County Convention and Visitors Bureau and co-chairs many local fundraising events. The Half Moon Bay Brewing Company is excited to continue its commitment to the community for years to come.