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Coppercraft Distillery makes and donates 1,000 gallons of hand sanitizer to Detroit Fire

Published  April 7, 2020 5:29pm EDT
Coronavirus in Michigan
FOX 2 Detroit

DETROIT (FOX 2) - A big donation is coming to the Detroit Fire Department – 1,000 gallons of hand sanitizer thanks to a distillery in west Michigan.

The gift came from Coppercraft Distillery over in Holland, Mich. thanks to Great Lakes Wine and Spirits, who donated their trucks and drivers.

Detroit Fire Dept gets donation of 1,000 gallons of hand sanitizer

Coppercraft Distillery in western Michigan made and donated a thousand gallons of much-needed hand sanitizer to the frontline workers in Detroit.

Anthony Renfroe, a semi driver who’s been with Great Lakes Wine and Spirits for 34 years helped make the delivery of the product that's very much in demand. Deputy Fire Chief Dave Fornell says this will go a long way in helping the City of Detroit's first responders.

“The fire department is now distributing all the stuff to the police, fire, EMS, health department - that type of thing,” Fornell says.

Detroit especially has been hit hard by COVID-19, seeing more than 5,500 cases and 200 deaths in Detroit alone as of Tuesday. It’s the city’s first responders have also fallen victim to this horrible virus, with more than 200 police officers and firefighters testing positive.

“Of course we have the EMS people, the fire people on the front lines every day,” Fornell says.

Which is why Coppercraft Distillery turned its spirits into sanitizer. It’s also pledged to send 10,000 gallons to the front lines, like Holland Hospital on the west side of the state and now Detroit as well.

“It makes me feel good to give back, to help people in need. That's always a blessing in itself,” Renfroe says. “We're all a family now. We’ve got to come together to get past this and beat this and first, stay safe and stay at home.”