A Covid-19 phenomenon: Restaurants launched GoFundMe campaigns to stay afloat
At the start of the pandemic, when PPP loans were difficult to access and unemployment checks were late to arrive, many restaurant owners created GoFundMe pages to raise money for their staff and businesses. The fundraising site, best known for playing host to pleas for help covering insurmountable medical bills or tragic memorial costs, has seen its greatest demand since it launched 10 years ago, courtesy of Covid-19. Vox spoke with small, independent restaurant owners in Brooklyn, New York, who paid their bills the GoFundMe way when government aid fell short. One example: Hunky Dory, an all-day cocktail bar and restaurant in the Crown Heights neighborhood. When it reached a quarter of its GoFundMe goal, its owners were able to give $400 to employees who received unemployment and $1000 to their undocumented workers.
