The secret ingredient in the comeback of downtown DeLand has been the exemplary community involvement of downtown business owners.
That includes people like Bill Budzinski, owner of the Elusive Grape, a wine bar, restaurant and popular gathering place in DeLand for 18 years. Budzinski recently was named DeLand's Volunteer of the Year along with attorney Brittany Gloersen, the city's Volunteer of the Year Under 40.
Since the pandemic's start, Budzinski has donated 17,300 pounds of meat to the Neighborhood Center and prepared 14,500 meals for the Spring Hill Resource Center.
That’s a lot of time and money given toward directly helping the less fortunate in the DeLand area.
During the closures and disruptions caused by COVID-19, he's been committed to keeping full-time restaurant staffers fully employed.
And even though he's given his time to fundraisers for breast cancer and childhood cancer awareness, he's also been able to find the time to serve his city as a member of the Downtown Community Redevelopment Agency Board.
Last August, he was among the merchants who brought ideas about how to safely keep downtown restaurants and bars open during the pandemic to the DeLand City Commission. These included allowing additional outdoor seating and closing some streets to cars so visitors can eat, drink and stroll outside.
It adds up to a resume that many business owners in Volusia and Flagler counties think they’d never be able to match. Here’s the thing: They don’t have to. They can pursue any one element in Budzinksi’s broad array of involvement – donating goods, labor or money to local charities; getting involved in setting policy and making economic decisions at the local level; acting as a responsible, caring employer. Every effort, large or small, helps build stronger and more prosperous communities.
Civic involvement, community problem solving and giving a helping hand to the less fortunate – Budzinski has truly been a full-service volunteer for DeLand, and an inspiration for all.
The Link LonkNovember 13, 2020 at 06:01PM
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Bill Budzinski, owner of DeLand's Elusive Grape, leads by example - Daytona Beach News-Journal
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