Owner of Phoenix bar donates nearly $13K in sales to Florence victims

PHOENIX — The owner of a Phoenix bar has sent a lot of money for Hurricane Florence relief.

“We raised $12,567 (the week of 9/11),” said Beth Johnson, owner of the Swizzle Inn. “That’s my sales that I chose to give up for the week.”

Johnson — who is originally from Iowa — has owned and run the bar for more than 20 years.

The place features a welcoming atmosphere, Christmas lights strung up behind the bar and lots of heavy furniture.

Johnson said it’s the “Cheers bar” of the neighborhood, with good people and good hearts who don’t hesitate to help others.

In turn, Johnson says, she feels she needs to be as involved as possible.

“I do as many fundraisers that I can — firefighters, community events — because I feel like I owe it to the community,” she said. “They have been very kind to me.”

Johnson said her family, while she was growing up, emphasized charity and compassion. She got her first chance to up her fundraising game during 2017’s Hurricane Harvey in Houston, Texas.

“The devastation bothered me,” she recalled, “and I thought I needed to jump in and help.”

Ever since, Swizzle Inn customers have jumped in enthusiastically to help their fellow countrymen and -women.

“People like to get involved, and they like to help,” Johnson said. “(But) a lot of times, they don’t know how or they don’t just do it on their own.”

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