Mainebiz

W W W. M A I N E B I Z . B I Z 21 J U N E 1 0 , 2 0 2 4 recently launched [the discounts] in hopes that it will motivate some individuals to come back in." Landry said that Fish Bones didn't want to do anything special to get customers back in. But being open was the message he wanted to send. "We just open our doors every day waiting for people to pop in," says Landry. "I think a lot of it is opening your doors and making people feel as wel- come and comfortable as we can. ere are a lot of people that are concerned." Peter Flanders, a partner at the restaurant Bon Vivant, which had only been open two months when the incident occurred, says that it is hard to tell how much the business lost during that time since he doesn't have the past number to compare it to. e numbers have been slightly under what he predicted, but he has seen an increase in the past couple of months. Maine Community Foundation helped raise $6.6 million for a Lewiston recovery fund, which was dis- tributed to victims, families and the community. "We have openly communicated with custom- ers and decided to continue marketing the way we always have," says Flanders. "We did receive a grant from Poland Springs, which really stepped up during this time … It was appreciated and went to good use. It allowed us to make sure we could keep staff and solidify that time period. It helped us pay for staff for a couple of months so we didn't have to reduce staff and cut shifts." At the heart of the recovery process, the people involved have also been crucial, says Cox of the Chamber. "Bartenders, in particular, tend to be free therapists for a lot of our community who were either present or connected with somebody who was present so there are a lot of day-to-day interactions that pull up what happened in our community," she says. "ere are a lot of people in the hospitality industry bearing that burden and I continue to be impressed by our restaurants and those who help run them. At the end of the day, they were the people who were quick to feed our first responders, survivors, and volunteers who were helping both of those groups." A l e x i s W e l l s , M a i n e b i z s t a f f w r i t e r , c a n b e r e a c h e d a t a w e l l s @ m a i n e b i z . b i z 22 LOCATIONS ACROSS MAINE & NEW HAMPSHIRE 1 - 8 0 0 - H A M M O N D W W W . H A M M O N D L U M B E R . C O M 2021 2022 2023 ROCHESTER ROCHESTER PROUD SUPPORTER OF THE LEWISTON & AUBURN COMMUNITIES AUBURN Bartenders, in particular, tend to be free therapists for a lot of our community who were either present or connected with somebody who was present so there are a lot of day-to-day interactions that pull up what happened in our community. — Shanna Cox Lewiston-Auburn Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce F O C U S Shanna Cox, the director of the Lewiston-Auburn Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce P H O T O / C O U R T E S Y O F L A M E T RO C H A M B E R

• Cover