FOR FRIENDS → FROM FRIENDS
Help Us Give a Little Back
For Karlos + Stephanie and the original Bayou Teche Brewing home in Arnaudville.
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After a devastating fire damaged the place they spent years building, we're quietly bringing together a group of friends who would like to help replace some of the things insurance simply can't.
September Goal: $10,000
A Place Built One Piece at a Time
Late in the evening of August 24, a fire tore through much of the public space at Bayou Teche Brewing's original home in Arnaudville.
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Thankfully, no one was hurt, and the firewall protecting the brewery did its job. The production area and brewing equipment survived.
But the kitchen, restaurant, taproom and portions of the recently expanded public space suffered extensive damage.
Along with the physical damage came losses that are much harder to put a dollar amount on, the artwork, carvings, paintings, handmade pieces and collected treasures that gave Bayou Teche its unmistakable personality.
Insurance can rebuild walls.
It can't recreate a history.
WHY WE ARE DOING THIS
A Note From Gus
Our friendship with Karlos and Stephanie started because of a project, but somewhere along the way, it stopped being about business.
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We had been working for years to bring a brewery downtown. After nearly a year trying to put together a deal with another brewery, it ultimately fell through.
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Thankfully, our friend Sammy connected us with Karlos and Stephanie.
Our original intention was pretty simple. We knew they had dreamed about opening a second location in Downtown Lafayette for years, and we wanted to give them the opportunity to do it.
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What started as a conversation about leasing a space eventually became something much bigger.
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A few years later, and after getting incredibly close to opening the downtown location before Hotel Lafayette was even part of the picture, Karlos and Stephanie graciously asked BJ and me to join them as partners in the second location.
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It was an honor, and something we're incredibly grateful for.
But more importantly, somewhere along the way, we became friends.
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Last year, I even had the opportunity to bring Karlos to my hometown in Brazil with several of our Lafayette friends. Between projects, beers, setbacks, celebrations, and a trip halfway around the world, this became personal.
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I want to be very clear about something:
This fund isn't about our new downtown location. And it isn't about protecting an investment.
BJ and I have no ownership or financial interest in the original Bayou Teche Brewing location in Arnaudville.
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We're doing this for Karlos and Stephanie.
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They're our friends.
And when your friends go through something like this, you show up.
— Gus
Replacing More Than Things
Insurance will hopefully replace much of what was physically lost. But anyone who has spent years building a place knows its value isn't measured only in equipment, furniture and square footage.
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It's the artwork collected over the years. The handmade pieces. The things created by friends and family. The little details with stories behind them that slowly turn a building into a place that feels like yours.
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This private fund is simply meant to give Karlos and Stephanie a little extra freedom as they begin figuring out what comes next.
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Maybe that means repurchasing artwork. Commissioning something new from one of the local artists or makers who helped create the original space. Replacing meaningful pieces insurance doesn't cover.
Or taking care of needs that none of us can anticipate yet.
How they use it is entirely up to them.
There are no sponsorship benefits. | No logos. | No recognition. | No strings attached.
Just friends helping friends.
$10,000
OUR SEPTEMBER GOAL
One month. One check. A little breathing room.
Contributions will be collected by Serving Good Vibes throughout September. At the conclusion of the fund, SGV will present the total amount collected directly to Karlos and Stephanie.
Places can be rebuilt.
What makes them special is harder to replace.
If this place, these people, or the memories made here have meant something to you, we'd be grateful to have you join us.
HELP US REACH $10,000
With love,
Gus, BJ + the Serving Good Vibes family