I submitted a letter to the editor to the Keene Sentinel on Sunday in reply to a letter that appeared in Saturday’s paper, full of misinformation, from the owner of Fritz. Here’s her letter, followed by my reply:
Imagine my surprise when my boyfriend, a member of the Keene Fire Department, informed me that my restaurant, Fritz, had become the “Free Staters” Sunday meeting ground.
In an act that may have begun with good intentions, I am put in a position that requires clarification.
Despite the unwitting representation of my business on the Free Keene Web site, I never consented to their choosing Fritz as a new meeting ground.
In accordance with most restaurant business models, the use of Fritz’s dining room is a service I enjoy providing to individuals in exchange for the purchase of food and to groups in exchange for rent or catering services.
Until now, I have not had to enforce this most basic principle, but am saddened I may have to if I feel my services are being taken advantage of.
Upon reviewing the Free Keene Web site I found my business name juxtaposed with political content of which neither Fritz, nor myself are associated.
This coincidence has caught my business in the crossfire of a situation I have no intention or desire of getting directly involved in.
I’m not opposed to followers of the Free State movement eating at my establishment, as people of all political views and ideologies are welcome to patronize.
However, I am opposed to political groups using my restaurant as a place to organize and solicit new members, especially without my approval.
In response to the Free Keene’s plan to invite themselves to Fritz, Belgian Fries for their weekly meetings, my response is “No, thank you.”
JESSICA GRAVELINE
Owner
Fritz Belgian Fries LLC
Here’s my reply which now halfway through the week has not yet been printed in the paper. Hopefully it will appear at some point, as the existing letter from Jessica has gotten over 40 comments as of this writing and is the most commented article currently available on their site:
I was disappointed to see a letter from Jessica Graveline, the owner of Fritz, appearing in the 11/7 Sentinel. Apparently she has been the victim of misinformation that I’d like to clear up. She had written to express her frustration that “Free Staters” had chosen her establishment for regular Sunday gatherings and was concerned as she doesn’t want, “political groups using my restaurant as a place to organize and solicit new members”.
I don’t blame her! Were I in her shoes, I wouldn’t want political organizing going on without permission. I don’t think I would give permission for a group to solicit, especially for politics, which I generally find detestable. Please understand that our event, “Social Sundays”, is not at all what she is describing. As you may be able to tell by the name, it is a social event. There is no organizing or solicitation going on. This is nothing more than a group of friends and associates getting together to eat, drink, and be merry. In this case, we were eating and drinking Fritz’ delicious food and beverages.
Additionally, FreeKeene.com is a website involving a number of New Hampshire natives, so it is not just a “Free Stater” phenomenon. The people at Free Keene love freedom, but are not all participants in the Free State Project. Finally, most of the participants at Free Keene are quite apolitical, so I don’t really feel like the term political really describes the content there. Yes, our blogger and NH native Nick Ryder did run for city council this year, but if Nick’s campaign team wanted to have lunch at Fritz and talk amongst themselves, would they be disallowed?
I certainly respect Jessica’s property rights and won’t continue bringing Fritz regular business on Sunday afternoons if she doesn’t want it, but I hope I’ve made it clear that Social Sundays is a social event and not in any way political or intended as outreach. I had called in advance to ask their staff if they could handle 10-20 people and the nice girl that answered the phone said yes. I’m sorry for not reaching out directly to Jessica beforehand. (I have since reached out to talk with her about this.) It’s never been necessary in the past. We’ve been having this event at different locations around town in the past few years and have never encountered any trouble from the business we choose to patronize. Please join us for the next Social Sundays. You can check our calendar at calendar.freekeene.com for details on where we’ll be this weekend.
Ian Freeman
Blogger, FreeKeene.com
