Megan Navarro
WIMBERLEY — “Behind every meal served, every coffee poured, every warm welcome at a Wimberley restaurant or shop, there’s a person working hard — sometimes, silently struggling,” stated Jay and Jennifer Bachman, owners of Wimberley Cafe, who launched a fundraising campaign and effort for local service industry employees last month.
Established April 28, the Wimberley Service Industry Relief Fund (SIRF) was created to provide direct financial support to the service workers who are facing unexpected hardship. The founders believe that the individuals who serve the community every day deserve a strong safety net in times of need; SIRF is able to do that through the donations made by residents, businesses and local organizations.
“Right now, Wimberley’s main source of income is tourism, entertainment and dining and it really has become a cute little resort town. We really feel like we have to protect those frontline workers at every opportunity; they shouldn't go down or have more trouble than is necessary,” Jay said. “Things happen and my wife and I — being in the service industry for over 30 years now — we're intimately aware that some restaurants and shops might have money one week and might not have money the next week. Sometimes, payroll will line up with sales taxes, will line up with bills hitting for inventory and sometimes, the bosses don’t have the funds to support their workers. That's where we come in and add a little extra padding.”
In the short two weeks since SIRF’s founding, as of May 12, the effort has obtained 501(c)(3) status and has helped four of the frontline workers in Wimberley with their medical bills — one of those being someone who was riding his bike to work and got hit by a car, while another was a worker who was injured in the kitchen, so she was out of work for at least a month.
“We all want to take care of our employees. We have 75 to 100 employees at any given time throughout the year … We want to make sure that they have every opportunity available to them. Some have chosen to get on the health insurance plans; some choose not to and that's okay, especially for the young people or college-aged kids who are learning what their priorities are in life,” Jay explained. “We want to make sure that they're not failing through no fault of their own. Things happen. Illnesses happen.”
“I've always wanted to make a difference in people's lives. This is going to help a lot of people and it's a really cool feeling, especially as a retired teacher and coach because that's your goal forever: to make a difference in someone's lives,” Jennifer shared.
While the organization is still in its early stages, Jay explained that they don’t currently have a set formula on who receives funds and who does not, but they have not been faced with the dilemma to deny anybody. Additionally, as an extra layer of protection, they do not go directly through the frontline workers, rather they work with the employers to help them make good, wise decisions.
Those who wish to make a monetary donation to the relief fund can do so through Ozona Bank in Wimberley, where there is a SIRF account, or online at bit.ly/3S8CEsy.
