From First Street to Capitol Hill: Cheryl Cryer Takes Hemp Wellness to Washington

Cheryl Cryer, founder of Urban Apothecary and Fat Sam's for Pets located in Batavia, Illinois,  is heading to D.C. to make the case for safe, responsible access to hemp wellness. Here's why it matters, and how you can add your voice.

If you've ever walked into Urban Apothecary on First Street in downtown Batavia, you know the feeling: shelves of small-batch tinctures, teas and salves, the smell of dried botanicals, and Cheryl Cryer ready to talk you through exactly what's in every bottle and how it can help your unique needs.

This month, she's taking that same care somewhere new: the U.S. Capitol.

An invitation to Washington

Cheryl has been invited to join DoorDash in Washington, D.C. for a full day of meetings with lawmakers on Capitol Hill. The goal is to show members of Congress how changing federal hemp policy affects responsible businesses and the people they serve: seniors, veterans, pet parents, and adults looking for safe, plant-based wellness options.

"After nine years of building Urban Apothecary, and so much time spent navigating compliance and advocacy, I'm grateful for the opportunity to bring that real-world experience directly to Washington," Cheryl shared.

It's a fitting next chapter for a woman who has never just sold products. She has studied them, written about them, and taught her community how to use them wisely.

Who is Cheryl Cryer?

Cheryl founded Urban Apothecary in 2017 after her own doctor-supported journey toward natural healing. Alongside it, she launched Fat Sam's for Pets, bringing the same thoughtful formulation to our four-legged family members.

Her credentials go well beyond the shop counter. Cheryl holds an MBA from the University of St. Francis, earned a certification in medicinal plants from Cornell University, and is a certified trauma-informed practitioner. She is also a co-author of CBD for Your Health, Mind & Spirit (Llewellyn Worldwide), co-authored the Hemp Ordinance for the City of Batavia, which is now used as a best practice across the country, and she regularly writes and teaches about natural approaches to stress, pain, and sleep.

And this won’t be her first time sitting down with lawmakers. Over the last 18 months, Cheryl has hosted three legislative tours to show representatives and policymakers the wellness side of hemp, most recently this past July. Last year, she hosted two of those tours back-to-back alongside hemp lobbyists, leading a presentation on hemp wellness for the officials in attendance.

In other words: when Cheryl talks about hemp, she's speaking from nearly a decade of formulating, sourcing, testing, labeling, educating, and advocating, not from a talking-points sheet.

What's happening with hemp, in plain English

In November 2025, a provision tucked into the federal spending bill that ended the government shutdown rewrote the legal definition of hemp. The new rules take effect on November 12, 2026, in Illinois just days from now - and December 11, 2026, federally.

The headline change is a cap of 0.4 milligrams of total THC per container. Not per serving: per bottle, per jar, per bag. 

That limit was aimed largely at high-potency, intoxicating hemp products like THC gummies and drinks that have flooded gas stations and convenience stores. But it also sweeps up something very different: full-spectrum hemp wellness products. These are the non-intoxicating tinctures, balms, and capsules that contain the whole range of compounds found in the hemp plant, including naturally occurring trace amounts of THC. Because of how the cap is written, most full-spectrum products on the market today would no longer qualify as legal hemp.

For many people, that's not a small change. Customers who rely on full-spectrum products for sleep, stress, or everyday aches could lose access to what works for them, or be pushed toward weaker isolate-only versions. Small makers, farmers, and local retailers like Urban Apothecary would be forced to reformulate, pull products, or close.

There is still movement on this issue. Federal officials have publicly signaled support for preserving access to appropriate full-spectrum CBD products, and several proposals in Congress would delay or revise the new rules. That's exactly why conversations with lawmakers matter right now.

The distinction Cheryl is fighting for

Cheryl isn't arguing against regulation. She's arguing for smarter regulation, the kind that can tell the difference between a carefully dosed wellness tincture and a high-potency product designed to get people high.

"Responsibly formulated, full-spectrum hemp wellness products are not the same as high-potency intoxicating products," she wrote.

Her message to lawmakers centers on three things:

• Access for the adults, seniors, veterans, and pet parents who depend on safe hemp wellness products

• A path forward for the small businesses and practitioners who have done the work to operate responsibly

• Safety and transparency first, through clear standards, honest labeling and testing, rather than blanket bans

  
  

"This trip is about preserving a responsible path forward for small businesses, practitioners and adult consumers while continuing to put safety and transparency first," Cheryl said.

Why this matters to our community

At MDW, we talk a lot about building your own toolkit for wellbeing, and about women having a seat at the table where decisions about their lives are made. Cheryl embodies both.

She's a local, woman-owned business owner who has spent years earning her community's trust, and now she's using that trust to speak up for her customers in a room where small businesses are rarely heard. Whether or not hemp is part of your personal routine, that's the kind of advocacy worth cheering on.

How you can help

Cheryl isn’t just going to Washington. She’s asking the rest of us to show up too.

1. Call your representatives. A short, personal phone call is still one of the most direct ways to be heard. Tell your U.S. Representative and Senators who you are, where you live, and how hemp policy affects you, your family, or your pets. Find your rep here.

2. Visit the Protect Access to Hemp Wellness page. Urban Apothecary has created a simple landing page that explains what's happening, why it matters, who could be affected, and exactly what to say when you call.

3. Follow along. Cheryl will be sharing her preparation and her day on Capitol Hill on social media. Follow Urban Apothecary and Fat Sam's for Pets to see advocacy in action.

4. Shop local. Stop by her brick-and-mortar location on First Street in downtown Batavia, or shop online at urbanapothecary.shop

Your voice matters, especially now.

Congratulations, Cheryl! We're proud to see you carry this community's voice to Washington.