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RCO finds opportunities at Take 16

Lead Summary
,
By
Lori Sorenson

As demand increases for Luverne’s Take 16 craft beer, so have job opportunities for local adults with disabilities.
Woodbury distributor Hohenstein’s Inc. recently picked up Take 16 beer for its Minnesota distribution – officially launching in Mankato with tap takeovers on April 14.
That means the local brewery will pick up its production pace, according to Take 16 brewer Luke Rensink.
“They said they can take as much beer as we can give them,” Rensink said, adding that the new distributor has offered to send a truck for Take 16’s total supply on hand.
That won’t happen, Rensink said, but he said he will ramp up production of all varieties of Take 16’s craft brew profiles.
Helping out with that production process are Rock County Opportunities clients who assemble boxes at the East Main Street brewery.
On Friday, several workers showed up to unfold six-pack cartons and place them in cardboard case boxes, four six packs per box, to prepare them for bottles.
“This way, when we go to pack them, we don’t have to worry about setting up boxes,” Rensink said.
He said the brewery has packaged over 1,800 cases of Take 16 beer since November, and RCO workers are charged with assembling boxes for all those bottles.
Take 16 opened in the fall of 2014 on East Main Street in the former Connell Car Care building. It was formed by a group of local investors, Luverne Brew Partners.
The brewery is open from 4 to 7 p.m. every Thursday, and Take 16 beer can be found on tap in dozens of bars and restaurants in Minnesota and South Dakota.
See Take16beer.com for more information.
RCO is a non-profit organization started in 1967 to serve people with developmental and related disabilities, including people with traumatic brain injuries.
RCO provides services including job skills development, supported employment, job searching assistance, behavior management, social skills development, independent living skills development and other services tailored to individuals.
See rockcountyopp.com for more information.

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