Christmas is a time for giving and spreading holiday joy throughout the community. Woods to Water Real Estate partnered with Big Axe Brewing in Nisswa Wednesday for a “Cheers for Charity” fundraiser. A dollar from each pint sold that night went to a family in the Brainerd Lakes Area in the hopes of giving them the best possible Christmas.

For the event, Woods to Water Real Estate works with an organization called Best Christmas Ever. With the help of Big Axe Brewing, they are raising money to sponsor a family who has fallen on hard times in the Brainerd Lakes Area.

This is a chance for some local businesses to rally around a family in need and support them through whatever hardship they may be going through. To select a family, organizers ask churches, schools, hospitals, and anyone they know to nominate a family in need.

To help reach the money needed, Big Axe Brewing was hoping to have sold many pints to give some anonymous family a very happy Christmas. For every pint sold, a dollar went to the family in need.

Jacob Blaeser, whose media production company BlazeAir Productions works with Woods to Water, expressed how much joy events like this mean to him.

“Seeing the joy on those families’ faces when [Woods to Water owner] Colton [Maher] and [his] crew come and drop off those presents, like, I do some filming for him as well, and just, I’m tearing up behind the camera, you know? It’s really, really a cool, cool situation,” said Blaeser.

To help out other families, Woods to Water has a gift tree at their downtown office in Nisswa. The tree has 50 tags with families asking for specific items, such as gloves and hats, that they need but cannot afford themselves.

By — Hanky Hazelton