Matt Baumgartner owns Bombers Burrito Bar, Wolff's Biergarten and The Olde English Pub & Pantry. He was recently named on Advocate Magazine's "40 Under 40" list... but it wasn't his success in the restaurant industry that won him this recognition.
Baumgartner is being recognized by the popular Advocate Magazine for his support of gay rights and his influence in the Capital Region. The Advocate has added him to their "40 Under 40" list for being a "budding powerhouse" in the region.
Baumgartner's Bombers Burrito Bar paid for the billboard last year in Albany that encouraged Republican Senator Roy McDonald to vote in favor of legalizing gay marriage. It was visible along McDonald's drive to the Capitol in Albany for one crucial week.
It is thought this billboard may have been what ultimately helped sway Senator McDonald to be one of the very few Republicans to vote in favor of legalizing same-sex marriage in New York State.
The Avocate's blurb on Baumgartner is quoted below:
Do you remember seeing that billboard? Are you glad to see Baumgartner was recognized for his work in this way?
It is thought this billboard may have been what ultimately helped sway Senator McDonald to be one of the very few Republicans to vote in favor of legalizing same-sex marriage in New York State.
The Avocate's blurb on Baumgartner is quoted below:
Matthew Baumgartner - 38
Albany, N.Y.
Owner, Bombers Burrito Bar
New York state senator Roy McDonald is one of only a handful of Republicans who voted in favor of marriage equality when the legislature approved it last year. When he was still wavering, a large billboard loomed over his drive to the capitol in Albany, which read, "To Senator McDonald. Please support marriage for ALL loving couples." The message came from Bombers Burrito Bar and its gay owner, Matthew Baumgartner.
"A lot of my friends for the gay cause are unaware of how the local politicians vote," he says. "When they saw a billboard about it, they got involved and called his office." The billboard cost Baumgartner $5,000 to run for a week. And he wasn't worried about losing business.
"People weren't going to stop eating there because of a billboard," he says. "And if they did, quite frankly, they're not really the kind of customers I'd like there anyway."
Do you remember seeing that billboard? Are you glad to see Baumgartner was recognized for his work in this way?
Leave a comment