Gilroy, Kernan & Gilroy Spearheads Campaign To Help Local Restaurants

Area Businesses Pledge to Support Local Restaurants in
“Take Out the Virus” Campaign

Area business owners have joined together and are pledging to support local restaurants in a campaign that will also help their employees and their families put food on the table. In an effort initiated by Gilroy, Kernan & Gilroy, seven businesses; Bank of Utica, Casa Imports, Gilroy, Kernan & Gilroy, Indium Corporation, McCraith Beverage, ParTech and Strategic Financial Services have pledged to reimburse employees for “take-out” meals purchased at area restaurants. They have all partnered with the Greater Utica Chamber of Commerce to create a web page where other businesses and consumers can join the pledge to “Take Out the Virus” and view a local restaurant guide for inspiration.

“The idea was generated out of three objectives: helping one segment of the economy that is particularly hard hit-restaurants and the many people they employ, helping employees and their families in a manner that is meaningful and will be appreciated, and doing this in a way that inspires others to join in and multiply the impact,” said Larry Gilroy, President of Gilroy, Kernan & Gilroy. “We are pleased to announce we have 7 area businesses who have committed to this effort, which adds up to over 1,700 employee reimbursements to date and $94,850. We hope to see that grow in the coming days and weeks.”

If businesses are in the position to participate and wish to make their own pledge to “Take Out the Virus” they are encouraged to visit greateruticachamber.org/takeoutthevirus to sign up. By signing up and making this pledge, businesses will be recognized on greateruticachamber.org and will receive resources to promote their participation.

“When we heard about this idea from the team at GKG, we were so excited to help promote it to all of our area employers,” said Meghan McGrogan, Executive Director of the Greater Utica Chamber of Commerce. “However, we recognize this is a tough time for a lot of businesses as well, and not everyone is in the position to help. So, we came up with a way for consumers to participate too. Everyone is welcome to visit our website and take the pledge, whether you’re a business or an individual community member.”

Individuals can make a pledge on greateruticachamber.org/takeoutthevirus as well. They also have an opportunity to submit a photo to share. Community wide, everyone is encouraged to use #takeoutthevirus on social media to promote our area restaurants whenever they order take-out.

To find out more about this campaign and how to participate, visit greateruticachamber.org/take-out-the-virus.