The Seattle Seahawks have won the Super Bowl, but beforehand, a Seahawks-themed soda drink sparked a community effort to pay it forward in Woodland.
After the Seahawks punched their ticket to the Super Bowl, Brittny Michaelson and Jessica Morris of Thirsty’s Dirty Soda and Coffee knew they had to celebrate with a brand new soda recipe that features Lotus energy, Sprite, green apple, blue raspberry and more.
After a friend stopped by and decided to buy 10 additional “The Seahawk” drinks, a train of customers continued to pay it forward after Thirsty’s shared the news on social media.
The effort started with just 10 and snowballed into 200 drinks in just a couple of days.
“Right after that, somebody came in and bought, I think it was five and then another 10 and then 25,” Michaelson said. “And then the local business, Pizza Factory, McPhee’s, I-5 Northbound Tap House was the first business to step up and they bought 10 and they offered to match any other business up to 25 drinks, and so then that just kind of snowballed, too.”
During the week leading up to the Super Bowl on Sunday, Feb. 8, Michaelson and Morris estimated a total 300 drinks bought toward the pay-it-forward effort at $4 each. On Thursday, Feb. 5, they sat at around 80 to give out with plenty of donations still coming in.
After the big win, Michaelson stated they do have a few pay-it-forward drinks left, and now that the Seahawks are champions, she added that she would love to see the pay-it-forward train continue for a bit if people choose to do so.
“Hopefully for those who haven’t got one yet,” Michaelson said.
During the pay-it-forward efforts, Pizza Factory of Woodland provided a coupon for a free mini pizza to all who continue the pay-it-forward train, Michaelson added.
Michaelson and Morris hope to see the idea continue with other themed drinks as it tells a lot about what the community of Woodland is all about: each other.
“It says that the people here have a lot of love to give, a lot of generosity,” Michaelson said. “I couldn’t be more proud of them. I couldn’t be more grateful for them.”
Many residents of Woodland have been stopping by to participate, but so have travelers making an effort to stop by in support of the small downtown business in the spirit of the blue and green.
“Growing up here my whole life, it definitely melted my heart a little bit,” Morris said of the community effort.
Thirsty’s opened in October, and in just a short few months, the coffee and soda shack continually grew in popularity. The specials, prices and quality are hard to beat.
“I think what’s appealing about the pay-it-forward with this drink is that our dirty sodas are fairly large. They’re 32 ounces,” Michaelson said. “This one has white Lotus. Lotus Energy is not cheap. So to have that in there for only $4 I think was kind of what was inspiring about it because we're offering soda with a premium additive for only $4. So it’s affordable for just about everybody. And being able to do that, I’d love to see another pay-it-forward train with maybe another specialty drink.”
Thirsty’s is located at the corner of Park Street and Bozarth Street near Candi’s Barbershop in downtown Woodland. Thirsty’s is open Monday through Saturday from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. Thirsty’s can be found on social media at “Thirsty’s Dirty Soda and Coffee.”
