MILWAUKEE — Turning pain into purpose. That's exactly what Matt Cisz, the lead brewer at Third Space Brewing, is doing. He's raising awareness for domestic violence after his 27-year-old niece, Karissa, was killed last year.
"Last fall my wife and I lost our niece to domestic violence. It was actually a murder-suicide up in the Green Bay area. She was just the sweetest, kindest person that would help anyone in any situation," said Cisz.
October marks one year since Karissa's death. It's also Domestic Violence Awareness Month. In honor of Karissa's memory, Cisz and the team at Third Space Brewing designed and will soon be releasing a new beer to help bring an end to domestic abuse.
"We decided to name the beer 'One in Four' which is to stand for the statistic that one in four women will experience domestic violence at some point in their lifetime," said Cisz. "There are 50 other breweries that are brewing this beer across 20 different states."
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But Third Space wanted to go a step further. They decided to donate all proceeds from the sales they make directly to the Sojourner Family Peace Center in Milwaukee. They are the largest provider of domestic abuse prevention and intervention in the state.
"To sit down and have a beverage that's called 'One in Four', that is going to be a conversation starter. People are going to remember that statistic. They are going to talk about it, and then they are going to think about their own network," said vice president and chief development officer, Cherie Swenson. "We all know four women, we all know nine men. One of them is experiencing domestic violence."
And by offering this beer, Cisz hopes it will help start conversations about domestic violence. Conversations that could save a life.
"If a survivor tells someone about their abuse, they are more than 99% more likely to survive," said Swenson.
"It affects everyone, and we need to put a stop to it," said Cisz.
The 'One in Four' beers will be available in stores on Oct. 10 and on tap at Third Space Brewing following a launch party on Oct. 14.
