Cochrane's Half Hitch is supporting various community endeavours and members through a new initiative.

Britt Kozloski, VP of Marketing and Co-Founder of Half Hitch Brewing Company, says although they have done cask nights in the past the brewery always wanted to give back to the community in a bigger way. "We tried doing cask nights in late 2017 but they just weren't bringing in the money that we were hoping that they would so we thought we'd just kick it off to be a month-long endeavour."

On Thursday (April 5) at 6 p.m. Half Hitch will be tapping a cask in support of Kim Petitclerc, a cancer survivor x 3 with a prosthetic leg, that needs replacing. Kim's strength and tenacity have sparked many community members to create initiatives to support the couple who have been battling Kim's recurring diagnosis for the past five years.

Kozloski went to high school with Kim's husband Devin and says supporting the couple just makes sense. "When I heard about his wife it hit home for me, it was right away an awesome and easy choice for us. Seeing her struggle and how strong she has been through it, this was an easy way to try and give back by encouraging people to come in and have a beer and burger."

The idea of giving back was heightened by the brewery's new ale, Papa Bear Prairie Ale, shares Kozloski. "We always had this idea that that was going to be some form of a charity brew. We named it after my stepdad Mike and the reason we wanted it to be a community brew was that he was the type of person who would always give back and we thought in his namesake this would be the perfect way to do it."

This Thursday the brewery will cask about 40 pints of Papa Bear Apricot Ale with all proceeds supporting Kim. Throughout the remainder of the month, $2 from each Community collaboration burger, as well as proceeds from Papa Bear Prairie Ale kegs sold throughout Alberta, will also go to support the Petticlerc's. 

Hoping to raise a few thousand dollars by the end of April, Kozloski says 'community' is what Half Hitch is all about. "To us, this is our home base and community has been a big thing for us since day one. We care about and love Cochrane and we have this amazing opportunity, it would feel weird if we weren't using it in some way to help out. It's a reason why we chose the name Half Hitch to begin with...it's a knot that needs its strength by being tied to other things, as a family were tied to each other and Cochrane as a brewery. That's always been a thing in the back of our minds."

March was the first month-long initiative where the brewery raised $1200 for 100 Men Who Give a Damn-Cochrane. 

If you would like to read more about Kim and her fight against cancer as well as a link to her fundraising page, read Superheroes Among Us.