Keep Noah Rolling held a charity bar shuffle to raise money for an Athens resident to buy a new van.
A group of about 15 people were on Court Street on Saturday night raising money for charity, but they weren't selling grilled cheese or having a bake sale. They were doing a bar shuffle.
The group was part of Keep Noah Rolling, an organization that's raising $60,000 for Noah Trembly, an Athens man with cerebral palsy, to buy a new van.
The Keep Noah Shuffling event started at Jackie O’s Pub and Brewery at 4 p.m. and ended at Tony’s Tavern at 7 p.m., with a stop at The Pub in the middle.
Jackie O’s brewed a special beer, Cherry Almond Kinda Fuzz, for the event and every pint it sold it gave $2 toward the charity. At Tony’s, a portion of the profits for every Hot Nut, a coffee and hazelnut liqueur mixture, which is Trembly's favorite, sold Saturday night was donated.
The idea for the shuffle came from Bob Benz, a Scripps Howard Visiting Professional, and the nine students in the strategic communication capstone course he teaches. Benz met Trembly at Tony’s shortly after moving to Athens and considers him a good friend. He suggested to the students in his capstone course that as part of the class they raise money for the organization.
Kelsey Miller, a senior studying strategic communication and who's in Benz's class, said Trembly is one of her favorite people in Athens.
“I think the cool thing about Noah is ... he encapsulates everything about Athens. He’s a gardener, he’s a vegetarian, he hikes like every single week, and he likes to go skiing,” Miller said. “He does more than what most college kids do on campus throughout their young lives, with our able bodies.”
She said that she's inspired by Trembly, who is an advocate for disabled people and accessibility issues and is a motivational speaker. The new van will allow his speaking career to take off because he can travel farther, she said.
Trembly said the event went very well, raising about $440 in donations Saturday night, but added that he expects the grand total to be about $1,500 once the bars include their donations.
Casey Goff, a resident of Columbus, was at Jackie O’s with his friends Saturday night and said it was the right night to come.
“We came to this bar and found out about it, and it’s for a great cause, so we decided to stick around and support,” Goff said. “The first round we did we actually bought (the specialty beer) because we heard about the proceeds going to getting that van."
Andres Castro Jr., the bar manager at Jackie O’s, said that he has known Trembly for 10 years, and “the Jackie O’s family is definitely 100 percent behind” the event.
“It’s a beautiful cause to be behind,” Castro said. “I’ve never met somebody who has had to go through such adversity with such a beautiful, positive attitude.”
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