Brewer’s community work featured in ad
TD Bank showcases Bonn Place Brewing Co., donates $10,000 to CACLV in business’s honor
The video opens with an introduction to the Masottos — Sam and Gina — who own Bonn Place Brewing Co.
It heads into a bit of history about south Bethlehem, where Bonn Place is based, with Ryan Schuck of TD Bank highlighting how small businesses have led the charge in revitalizing the community from what was one of America’s greatest steel towns.
The short film shifts back to the Masottos, who relate how they try to give others advice about starting a business.
“This is the community we can change,” Gina says. “What we can change is right here and right now.”
That change they hope to bring is what led to TD Bank recently honoring the Masottos and their brewery in an ad campaign about companies giving back.
Bonn Place was one of three small businesses recognized throughout the bank’s eastern U.S. footprint; TD, based in Canada, honored seven in total covering North America. The
recognition resulted in a threeminute video promoting not just the Masottos but south Bethlehem as well.
TD is also donating $10,000 to Community Action Committee of the Lehigh Valley in the Masottos’ name toward a business program.
Schuck, vice president and small business relationship manager with TD Bank, nominated the Masottos for the recognition. He said last week the money will be earmarked toward an arm of CACLV aimed at helping female-owned entrepreneurs and others who aspire to open a businesses.
Community Action, through its Rising Tide Community Loan Fund, loaned the Masottos $130,000 when they embarked on Bonn Place in 2015. That, and a boost from city officials and neighbors, they say, helped them launch the brewery in 2016.
“We needed a bit of help to get this place opened … and everybody needs help,” Gina Masotto says on the video.
TD Bank’s Arianna Orpello said the recognition was based on an “authentic appreciation” of their impact in the community.
“I think the biggest thing that stuck out for us was their desire to help other local entrepreneurs and the transformation of Bethlehem at large,” said Orpello, senior vice president of brand channel and field marketing.
Sam Masotto deflected the recognition, noting the help received through loans and organizations such as Lehigh University’s Small Business Development Center. He also said the couple helps others in the community and beyond in various ways. For example, Bonn Place was one of five area brewers that collaborated in a beer fundraiser for victims of the 2018 California wildfires.
“I look at that [video] and thought, this business is doing what the [TD] campaign is supposed to be about,” said Alan Jennings, executive director of CACLV. “We’re so proud of Sam and Gina, and the fact that we had any role in it whatsoever is something that is so exciting to us.”
The video also includes comments from Anna Smith of CACLV’s Community Action Development Corp. and Christie Vymazal, co-owner of The Flying V, a mobile food business, both talking about the Masottos’ commitment to the South Side. The final scenes include a surprise gathering for the Masottos, thanking and hugging with bank officials, businesspeople and residents who have come out to congratulate the couple.
Sam Masotto said filming took place June 4. The promotion, which also features billboards placed in the community, launched July 25, according to bank officials.
TD Bank, which has eight Lehigh Valley branches, operates in 15 states and the District of Columbia.
Its footprint extends from Maine to Florida, Orpello said. In its promotion, the bank also recognized Jacob’s Soul Food in New York and Sunrise Bread Co. in Titusville, Florida.