The time has passed to settle for acknowledging the inequality that exists in our society without taking action. The black community in particular continues to be traumatized with violence and murder, unprovoked and unsubstantiated, and even when capturing it on video, our institutions lack the ability to learn from it and reform in a way that substantially improves their function and role in society. 

At Grow Sciences, we have a sincere appreciation for the challenges many communities and races face. We openly support all walks of life and aim to hire people with a variety of backgrounds because we believe diversity is a source of creativity, differentiation, empathy, and rich experiences for all involved. 

We have spent the past week listening and watching the stories being told around the country with the same heartbreak and disbelief as many others. The value we can add is by taking action in the form of making contributions in time and money to those impacted by the most recent events. 

Specifically, our company is committing to donate up to $10,000, divided across minority owned organizations and businesses that have been affected by rioting and vandalism in recent days. This began today with $1,000 to Du Nord, a black-owned business impacted by the looting and rioting in Minneapolis. Du Nord is accepting funds to both rebuild their own business and other minority-owned and family-owned businesses in their neighborhood. 

If you care to participate with us and countless others, please visit the link in our bio to see the list of affected organizations that need support to get back on their feet. Alternatively, visit growsciences.com/inthegrow (our blog).

If you have a recommendation for ways to volunteer time in Phoenix or throughout Arizona, please comment below so we can explore that too.

Building a better society should not be an impossible endeavor, and it begins by acknowledging systemic racism and listening empathetically  to the experiences affected communities live through every day. We should strive to boost our individual empathy, further enhanced by challenging our individual preconceptions and prejudices, and investing time to listen and learn more about our fellow citizens. Only then can we really enhance our civic duty and progress toward meaningful structural reforms at the organizations and institutions that drive the injustices we all know exist.

We understand that we will never fully understand. But we stand with you.

Here is a list (by no means comprehensive) of verified GoFundMe fundraisers to support black and minority owned businesses impacted by rioting in Minnesota and fundraisers for organizations supporting communities impacted by the riots.

Relief For Lake Street

Relief for Carniceria La Huazteca

Rebuild Cedar Child Care Center

Help E&L Supermarket

701-707 E. Lake Street Fund

Destruction of Family Run Business During Riots

Family Owned Business Affected By Riots and COVID

Rebuild Fade Factory

Gandhi Mahal Revival Fundraiser

Rebuild SLP Family Lake St. Joyeria Jelly

Small Family Business Looted in Minneapolis

We Lift Up – Minneapolis ReliefHelp Rebuild a Minneapolis Mental Health Clinic

Minority Owned Businesses Harmed By Looting in MSP

Additionally, you can find a list of local, black owned restaurants to support in Arizona here:

Black Owned Arizona Restaurants, courtesy of the Arizona Republic

The post Our thoughts and actions following the murder of George Floyd appeared first on Grow Sciences.

/’ɡrō ˈsīənsəz stimyələs/

noun: grow sciences stimulus; plural noun: grow sciences stimuli

1. A gesture of goodwill in the form of a free bag of cannabis.

It’s in our company’s DNA to pay it forward, and many in the Arizona cannabis community have been wonderfully supportive of our company and helped us grow since 2017.

In the middle of March as the quarantine directives began around the country, it was clear there was going to be some economic fallout and hard times for many. When the government stimulus was announced, we decided to announce a cannabis stimulus of our own, targeted at those who were already being impacted, and as a gesture of goodwill.

We weren’t sure if our idea would get traction, but we decided to post the following message to Instagram and find out:

The response was overwhelming. Within minutes we began receiving emails with personal stories from all walks of life who were already under pressure. Individuals, couples, many with children, who had lost hours or lost jobs. Some are taking care of other loved ones and even living with them, refraining from normal activities like many of us are so they can avoid compromising their family.

Over the course of 48 hours we collected info from 395 patients who ultimately received a stimulus package. The package wasn’t overwhelming – a quarter ounce of flower with some stickers. It came with a smile from the incredibly supportive staff at Local Joint, Health for Life McDowell, and The Holistic Center, who all helped us fulfill our mission.

Brittany @localjoint_az helping set up a table with stimulus packages for pickup.

We’ve compiled some of what we learned from the conversations we had. It’s important to note that we only announced it on Instagram (although we saw it spread to other platforms), and our audience therefore influenced the stats we’ve compiled:

• At the time of our post, our instagram audience was ~22,000 people, made up of 76% men, 24% women.
• The age group of our current followers is:
  • 34 or younger: 72%
  • 35-44: 20%
  • 45-54: 5%
  • Age 55+: 3%
• The post had 4,124 impressions.

395 individuals received the stimulus. Of that group, here’s what we learned:

• 98% (387) of individuals reported experiencing challenges with employment, with the majority being under the age of 40.
  • 30% have lost their job; 63% (75) of them are under the age of 30 and 34% (42) are between ages 30-39.
  • 31% have been furloughed; 48% (59) of them are under the age of 30 and 34% (41) are between ages 30-39.
  • 23% have reduced hours.
  • 13% were either previously unemployed, searching for work, or felt covid-19 was negatively affecting their search for work.
• 70% (275) of individuals shared their age and the industry they work(ed) in.
  • 75% (207) of all age groups fall into the food/entertainment/service industries, making this the hardest hit segments.
  • 42% (115) are under the age of 30, of which 87 lost their job or have been furloughed.
• 106 individuals reported having at least one child and/or one dependent.
  • 57% (60) lost their job or have been furloughed.
  • 27% (29) had their hours reduced.
• 19 individuals reported that both they and their spouse/partner lost their job or were furloughed.

Testimonials

“I am a 26 year old disabled epilepsy/organ donor recipient patient who’s access to medication is being hit hard from this whole covid-19 virus.”

“Buying the quality meds I need for my medical issues is having to take a back burner while I make sure we have enough money for the other essentials for me and my daughter. My boyfriend has MS and with people panic buying its been extra hard to find the strains that really work for him to provide relief so that he can function and have a better quality of life.”

“I can go without meds for a bit, it’s not unbearable, but my son suffers from severe depression and anxiety, a day without meds for him is not a good day.”

“Right now both my parents and I are looking at 6 weeks of potentially no pay after these final checks and are just doing whatever we can to get by. I worry about my mother, who has Lupus and could be affected rather dramatically if she were to catch this virus.”

“I use cannabis to help me with my chronic pain. I’ve actually gotten off the majority of my prescriptions since starting smoking. Unfortunately, I don’t have the money to buy any right now because I’m scrambling trying to make rent.”

“I just beat stage 4 cancer about a year ago and a half ago, it has been hard to get back to working after it and now I’m out of luck.”

“We just lost my aunt today on top of everything else… There will not be a funeral and we barely got to say goodbye.”

“My father has been furloughed so I have stepped up and taken responsibility for a few of their bills. I have put every dollar I can afford towards taking care of my family.”

In closing, the stimulus was a fulfilling and inspiring experience for us. We hope to continue paying it forward, like many in our community already do, and hope it inspires other individuals and organizations in the cannabis community to do so as well.

-Grow Sciences

The post Grow Sciences Stimulus appeared first on Grow Sciences.