Brooklyn Park Business Owner Needs Double Lung Transplant

Nearly every day in Brooklyn Park, the staff from Skaalvenn Distillery do their part to keep America’s liquor industry flowing.

“Yeah, so usually around a couple hundred bottles a day,” said Charlie Cummings, a Skaalvenn employee. “So maybe around 150 gallons in an easy day’s work.”

And that’s just for the bottling work they do with Red Locks Irish Whiskey.

Their bread and butter, so to speak, is their cocktail bar and homemade line of craft spirits developed by founder Tyson Schnitker.

“Business isn’t going too bad,” said Schnitker. “Alcohol’s in a little bit of a slump right now globally, just with people cutting back on drinking, THC. The younger generation isn’t drinking like we probably did.”

But this isn’t a story about the state of the alcohol industry or the success of Skaalvenn Distillery‘s product line.

Last year, Schnitker, a non-smoker in his early 40s, was diagnosed with lung disease.

“Seen a lot of doctors. Had a lot of tests. More doctors and tests than you could ever imagine,” said Schnitker.

Those doctors determined that he’s going to need a double lung transplant.

It’s partially why he’s had to carry around an oxygen tank for the last five months.

“We thought I was getting better,” said Schnitker. “But it turns out my body just likes to fool people, and the disease has been progressing. So, scar tissue building up in the lungs for an unknown reason.”

Skaalvenn Distillery sells a line of six different spirits.

Next steps

Yet despite the bad news, the mood around Skaalvenn has been generally positive.

“If you can’t make fun of it, it’s gonna tear you up,” said Cummings, the Skaalvenn employee.

Now, the attention shifts to getting Schnitker on the donor list for a new set of lungs that are the right size, blood type and tissue match.

“It’s just one of those, we’ve got to take it day by day and see how it goes,” Schnitker said.

While the future is uncertain, he remains hopeful. In the meantime, he does have one piece of advice.

“Life is sometimes unexpected. Eat cake,” Schnitker said in a recent Instagram video while his wife fed him cake in the hospital.   

Schnitker hopes to be put on the transplant list for a new set of lungs by the end of the month. He also noted that Skaalvenn provides health insurance for him and his staff, which isn’t always common in the hospitality industry. His plea to people is to support bars and restaurants that also offer insurance to employees.

Skaalvenn Distillery Founder Tyson Schnitker has been on oxygen since the beginning of 2025.

Brooklyn Park