**FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE**

Date:         June 23, 2023

Contact:    Victoria Gearity, Events & Communications Director

917-685-6717, events@singsingkillbrewery.com

Green Ossining Sustainability Partnership Awards Presented at Sing Sing Kill Brewery Green Drinks Event

OSSINING, NY:  In a taproom full of environmentalists attending the recent Green Drinks Ossining event at Sing Sing Kill Brewery, 24 local businesses and organizations were announced as 2023/2024 GREEN OSSINING SUSTAINABILITY PARTNERSHIP (GOSP) winners. GOSP was created to recognize local businesses and organizations that have demonstrated environmental stewardship through their business practices, and have agreed to be resources to others who may want to learn from them.

Green Ossining Chair Suzie Ross said, “We are grateful for the efforts made by these businesses and organizations in modeling good environmental stewardship. Small businesses and local organizations can be incredibly impactful as role models in their communities where business practices are far more transparent to customers.  As models, they can teach others how accessible and feasible environmentally-conscious solutions can be. We hope Green Ossining Sustainability Partnership members are called upon as a resource to help others find their path with solutions to help them become more conscious of their environmental impact.”

Sing Sing Kill Brewery (SSKB) established Green Drinks Ossining to further their commitment to sustainability by welcoming like-minded innovators to showcase their achievements and inspire more.

SSKB co-owner Eric Gearity raised a glass to Green Ossining and all the event attendees before telling the story of how SSKB decided to establish Green Drinks Ossining. Earlier this year he had been asked to participate as a panelist at a seminar called Walk the Walk at the NYS Craft Brewers Conference which was focused on sustainability. Gearity explained, “Our brewers association, on both the national and state level, have sustainability resources that we engage with to connect with others in our industry. Until now we haven’t had that same kind of interaction locally. Tonight we not only celebrate the people that are doing great things for the environment, but also build connections to grow support. We are excited to be part of such an incredible community.”

Mr. Gearity had attended Green Drinks Westchester events that took place prior to the pandemic. This spring SSKB reached out to Dani Glaser who had led that initiative and she passed the torch. The Green Drinks Ossining series is guided by recommended practices of Green Drinks International, an organic, self-organizing network of environmental leaders across NPOs, academia, government, and business. SSKB partners with Green Ossining to curate monthly programming and connect with environmental leaders and activists, near and far. The series is held on the third Wednesday of every month in the SSKB taproom. Next month’s event will take place on July 19, and the program topic will be announced soon.

Green Ossining’s John Codman and Alma Padilla explained the GOSP criteria and announced the winners. There are 14 criteria ranging from composting to carpooling and staff training to efficient water and energy usage. Though GOSP recipients were mostly from Ossining, there were a handful from other communities including Croton, Pleasantville, Irvington, Bedford Hills and as far as Brewster and even Rosendale located in Ulster County. The recipients have primarily come to Green Ossining’s attention through their participation in Green Ossining’s Earth Day Festival, an annual event that is the largest of its kind in Westchester County. With greater visibility for the program, Green Ossining leaders hope to encourage more interest in the adoption of sustainable business practices.

The winners are listed below by category.

Food & Beverage (Brick & Mortar): Baked by Susan, Blue Pig, Brothers Fish & Chips, Cravin Jamaican Cuisine, Fable: From Farm to Table, FarmEats BBQ, First Village Coffee, Food that Fits You/Root2rise, Sing Sing Kill Brewery

Food & Beverage (non Brick & Mortar): 6 Degrees Or Less Brewery

General Business: Fable: Farm to Table, Hudson Valley Books for Humanity, Hudson Valley Vertical Farms, Just Eyes Optometry, Ossining Riverworks, Regina’s Essentials, Theater O

Organizations: Bethany Arts Community, Ethical Society of Northern Westchester, Neighbors Link, Second Chance Foods, Teatown Lake Reservation, The Center at Mariandale, Westchester Land Trust

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Courtesy Photo: Green Ossining Sustainability Partnership Honorees gathered at Sing Sing Kill Brewery to receive their awards and share insights about their environmental practices as part of the recent Green Drinks Ossining Event