Not to long ago, the roof of The Scrap Exchange in Durham collapsed, forcing them to temporarily close up shop. However, they have been busy trying to raise the money to open back up in their new location. For those not familiar with The Scrap Exchange, they are a nonprofit organization whose mission is to promote creativity, environmental awareness, and community through reuse.

The NC home brewing community has come to the rescue! Thanks to a great idea by Keil Jansen, Durham will be playing host to it’s first ever homebrew festival. That’s right, we’re all familiar with the World Beer Festival in Durham, but now imagine the same thing (granted on a slightly smaller scale) but with great home brewed beer!

The festival, “Brew Durham,” will help raise money for the Scrap Exchange to help them reach their fundraising goal!

So, how can YOU help out?

Well, if you are a brewer in the Durham/Triangle area, you can brew some beer! They are looking for about 15 brewers who are willing to make 2-3 styles of beer (10-15 gallons) and serve them at the festival. To help sweeten the deal, brewers will receive 35% off at Bull City Homebrew if you buy ingredients there to make beer for the event. And on top of that, you can also get a $50 stipend from the event to help cover the cost of your ingredients, or you can score some additional free tickets to the event.

If you don’t think your brewing skills are ready for the big show, or if you just don’t have time to brew 10-15 gallons between now and October 15th, they are also looking for volunteers to help out during the event.

Also, if you just want to come and learn more about home brewing and try some great beer by local home brewers, come out to the event and donate to The Scrap Exchange!

The last thing to do is help us spread the word! The more people that hear about the event, the more money we can raise for the Scrap Exchange. It should be a great event and a lot of fun.

To sign up as a brewer or volunteer, or for more information about the event, visit the Brew Durham website, follow @BrewDurhamFest on Twitter, and contact Keil Jansen.

When: October 15, 2011. 1-4pm and 5-8pm (that’s right, TWO sessions!)

Where: The new Scrap Exchange location in downtown Durham next to Golden Belt (923 Franklin Street)

And if you’re still not convinced you should come, you should get pumped because I will be one of the brewers cooking up some suds for the event. I plan to have on tap my Dry Stout (think Guinness but with much more flavor…and better) and possibly a lager/pilsner, but the 2nd beer is still undecided.