Introducing Eric Youngson, Portland OR Chapter's new Music Outreach Program Coordinator!

Please join us in welcoming Eric Youngson to the Music Outreach Program Coordinator - Surfrider Portland Chapter role!

My name is Eric Youngson. I am a surfer and general outdoor enthusiast who loves to be in the natural world. I have lived in Portland, Oregon for about six years now and feel like it's my home. I am originally from the San Francisco Bay Area and most of my family lives there but I spent some time in the frozen land of Michigan so I definitely appreciate the Northwest in a way many Californians may not.

Despite my heritage I started surfing in the Northwest a couple of years ago after completing engineering degree at Oregon Institute of Technology. I studied renewable energy and have worked for some time as an Energy Efficient Engineer working with commercial buildings. I've always had a passion for the environment and a special connection with the ocean, having many early memories of the shore and being so long removed from it in Michigan.

I am really excited about connecting with the amazing music scene here in Portland. I've had many great times at concerts and enjoyed the excitement of seeing local talent take off and gain national attention. I hope that the vibrant energy of our local scene can help to promote the mission of Surfrider and find synergy between environmental activism and the music scene that moves us.

Donavon Frankenreiter - Wonder Ballroom, 3/31/2012

by Nicole Parisi-Smith, Surfrider volunteer

The Portland Chapter of the Surfrider Foundation had an outreach table at the Donavon Frankenreiter show at the Wonder Ballroom in Portland, OR on Saturday, March 31, 2012. Thanks to Donavon and Anna of Monqui Presents for inviting us to be there, and for setting things up for us! Thanks, too to Kenny of the Wonder Ballroom who helped us get set up, and for the floor lamp he brought out to us, so that fans could see our table in the dark!

We were set up next to merch, in the left back corner of the beautiful venue. Donavon came by before the doors opened, and gave us Donavon mustaches to wear during the show. (They were on sale at merch for $1, along with other great stuff.) It was so nice to meet him, and to be able to personally thank him for having Surfrider at the show.

Donavon hung out at merch during Matt Grundy's opening set, and then again at the end of the night. This meant that the merch area was a hub of activity! This was lucky for us - we got to talk with a lot of fans, some of whom were new to Surfrider and some were not. One fan signed up for a Surfrider membership, we added new people to the Chapter's monthly e-newsletter mailing list, and fans signed our Ban The Bag petition. It was a great night!

Special thanks to the volunteers - Andrew, Kevin, and Sunya! Thanks to Lara for the great photos!

Introducing Sunya Ince-Johannsen!

Hello all Surfrider MOP blog followers! My name is Sunya Ince-Johannsen and I just accepted the Music Outreach Position in Portland, OR. I am so excited to get this great program going here in Portland!

I recently graduated from Southern Oregon University with a BS in Environmental Studies: Ecology and Conservation, so environmental protection and activism has always been an important part of my life. I have lived by the ocean in different places throughout my life, either in Oregon, Maui, or in Germany on the North Sea, where I learned to windsurf, and then later kiteboard and surf. Learning to windsurf has shaped my life in ways I never imagined it would, combining my love for the ocean with my love for outdoor recreation. As most windsurfers, kiteboarders, and surfers know, having fun in the ocean also comes with a responsibility to care for that resource, and leave it better than you found it. This is where the Surfrider Foundation comes in! Having recently moved to Portland, I am looking for ways to stay in touch with the things I love most: the ocean, outdoor recreation, music, and the wonderful community of people who gravitate toward these things.

I’m very excited to be involved with the Surfrider Foundation, after following the organization for years. I’m also looking forward to getting involved with the musical scene in Portland. My musical taste is more or less across the board, but some of my favorite bands include Xavier Rudd, Yeasayer, The Devil Makes Three, Groundation, Eddie Vedder, and most other good music!

Please feel free to email me at sunya @ oregonsurfrider.org if you would like to volunteer at an upcoming show in the Portland area. Thanks!

Calling All Crows Alternative Break Tour - 3/2/12

By Nicole Parisi-Smith, Surfrider Portland Chapter

Chad, a member of the bands Dispatch and State Radio assembled a new band Chadwick Stokes & The Pintos for the purpose of recording the album Simmerkane II. (Check it out here.) The band is on tour in support of the album. They came through Portland, OR last night for a show at the Doug Fir Lounge.

The nonprofit that Chad and his wife Sybil founded in 2008, Calling All Crows is running an Alternative Break Tour (ABT) on the tour. A group of fans from all over the USA and Canada are traveling from show to show with the band, performing community service in the communities they visit along the way. The organization reached out to the Portland Surfrider Chapter to learn if we had a service project that they could participate in on the afternoon of the Doug Fir Lounge show. We were so excited to work with Calling All Crows again, and to get to meet and work with their volunteers on the City of Portland's Green Street Program.

The City of Portland recently completed the construction of a new pipe that prevents raw sewage created in residents' homes and city businesses from backing up into those same buildings, and overflowing into Portland's waterways during storm events. As part of this effort the City of Portland is constructing "green streets" around the city. These are basically gardens specially designed to provide habitat to local species, prevent excessive amounts of rainwater from entering the sewage system via the stormdrains, keep our urban environment cool, make the city more bike and pedestrian friendly, and to beautify the city. The city has installed 1,000+ of these green streets (gardens) since the first garden was installed back in 2010. City workers attend to each garden on a quarterly basis. Residents volunteer to maintain the gardens between visits. Since only 50-60 of the gardens currently have volunteer caretakers, we stepped in yesterday to clean up the gardens located near the Douglas Fir Lounge.



Rick, Anna, and I from the Chapter met the Calling All Crows volunteers at the Jupiter Hotel, adjacent to the Douglas Fir Lounge at 4pm for a quick introduction to Surfrider and the City of Portland's Green Street Program. Outfitted in vests and gloves, we then took a walking tour of the neighborhood, stopping at each garden. We cleaned the debris out of the cuts in the curb that allow rainwater to wash from the streets and sidewalks into the gardens. This ensures that rain can travel from the streets and sidewalks into the gardens, where the water is absorbed by the soil and plants and naturally treated before cycling back into the environment. We also collected mountains of trash that we found in the gardens. (Did you know that cigarette butts are made out of plastic and are therefore not biodegradable? Yep. We made special efforts to pick those up.) All told, we collected about six large buckets of trash, a small pile of recyclables, and had a great time talking about why each person had chosen to be there yesterday.



Calling All Crows kindly invited the Surfrider volunteers to attend the show after the cleanup. We were right up front. Great night!





Thanks to all who came out to volunteer with us, and to Gregg and Pete from the Surfrider Portland Chapter, and Matt and Chris from Calling All Crows for putting this event together! Thanks, too to Anne and Emily in the City of Portland's Environmental Services office who educated us on the Green Street Program and permitted us to borrow some tools, the Jupiter Hotel for storing our tools behind the front desk and for inviting us to their art gallery opening to thank us for our community service.

And for all of you State Radio fans - Chad announced last night that they are working on a new album!

For more photos from the cleanup and concert visit our Surfrider Foundation Music Outreach Program Facebook page.

Service Event with Calling All Crows - Portland, OR 3/2/12

Thanks to Tara of the Portland Chapter for circulating this volunteer opportunity announcement, and to Gregg for coordinating it!

Volunteer with Chad Stokes and The Pintos 

Stormdrain Marking with Calling All Crows 

This Friday, March 2 

Jupiter Hotel

4:00 p.m.

Help mark storm drains along side the volunteer crew from the bands Dispatch and State Radio! This coming Friday, March 2nd, Dispatch and State Radio will be in town, and they are bringing with them their traveling volunteer crew, Calling all Crows. The group has asked to help us out with some volunteer service! Sweeeeet! So, we're looking for volunteers to meet us and the Calling all Crows crew at the Jupiter Hotel (800 E. Burnside St) at 4pm on Friday, March 2nd. We'll work 'til about 6 p.m. marking storm drains or picking up litter from the local bioswales if its raining.

Come dressed for the weather, and ready to have a good time! The Calling all Crows group is a great bunch. They helped us out two years ago by helping us petition for Ban the Bag with Chad Stokes and John Butler. We are excited to work with them once again! You can find out more about Calling all Crows here: www.callingallcrows.org If you are interested in helping out on Friday, contact Gregg Hayward, Storm Drain Coordinator for Surfrider Portland. You can email him at stormdrainmarkingpdx @ gmail . com

Rock on!

Welcome, Portland Chapter!

The Portland, Oregon Chapter of the Surfrider Foundation held their annual planning retreat this weekend. The Chapter's leadership team decided to bring the Surfrider Foundation Music Outreach Program to Portland!

The below is reposted from the Surfrider Oregon blog. Please share the news with your networks - help us find a Music Outreach Program Coordinator for the Portland Chapter!

The Portland Chapter of the Surfrider Foundation is looking for a new Music Outreach Program Coordinator. The Music Outreach Program started in 2007 and works with touring and local musicians to bring the Surfrider message to fans and concertgoers. 

MOP has given our volunteers access to shows by Donavon Frankenreiter, Colbie Caillat, Brian Wilson, Brett Dennen, State Radio, and many more. We need a new person to organize and attend these shows and events! 

The position involves not just running a table at shows, but also recruiting volunteers and training them. You’ll work independently, but under the advisement of MOP founder Nicole Parisi-Smith (currently based in Portland, Oregon). 

It’s an excellent opportunity to get more involved with Surfrider, learn skills, make contacts, and, of course, get free concert tickets! (Like all chapter roles, this position is volunteer.) 

Requirements: 
• - Enjoy live music and already go to shows of your own accord, and follow tour schedules and artist nonprofit interests 
• - Able to stay out late on weeknights 
• - Comfortable directing volunteers and interacting with the public 
• - Proactive, dependable, timely, and organized 
• - Be a Surfrider Foundation member (previous volunteer experience strongly preferred) 

Preferred candidates will also have regular access to a car, as some venues are not public transit-accessible. 

Interested candidates should contact Nicole Parisi-Smith at nicole@SFsurfrider.org

Congratulations, Keely!

We are excited to share that San Francisco Chapter Music Outreach Program volunteer extraordinaire Keely Gerhold has moved to Portland, Maine to join the Reverb team as the Tour Greening Logistics and Office Operations Coordinator!

Reverb shared the news in today's Reverb e-newsletter.

Please join us in congratulating her!

If you're a regular reader of our blog then you've seen her show reports! You can find her bio here on the Reverb Who We Are page, where she gave us a shout out:)

We are so excited for you, Keely!

The Sweet Bones, Realstar Movement, WaitingRoom - San Francisco Community Music Center - 1/12/2012

The San Francisco Chapter is the beneficiary of a free, all ages concert happening this Friday, January 13, 2012 at the San Francisco Community Music Center (544 Capp at 20th St) from 8-11:30. Join Us! You'll be treated to some great music from an all girl rock band called WaitingRoom, a Latin American rock bank called The Sweet Bones, and a hip hop rock group called The Realstar Movement. Thanks to San Francisco Chapter member and Music Outreach Program volunteer Nick Arlas for putting this event together!

Green Day surprises guests at San Francisco Chapter's Rip Curl Pro Search Kick Off Party

Taken from the Surfrider HQ e-newsletter SOUP, circulated to readers today:

On November 1st, Surfrider Foundation and Rip Curl teamed up to host the Rip Curl Pro Search Kick Off Party in San Francisco, CA featuring lo-fi garage rocker Ty Segall and the recently reunited Kut U Up featuring Transworld SURF Editor-in-Chief Chris Cote. After an insane day of overhead, offshore surf at the opening day of the Rip Curl Search in San Francisco, things got even better when punk rock legends, and Bay Area locals Green Day showed up and surprised the crowd with a 16 song set. Green Day rocked the house for a solid two hours, previewed new songs and talked about the importance of protecting oceans, waves and beaches. In addition to being an awesome night, proceeds from the evening were donated to the Surfrider Foundation San Francisco Chapter and their campaign to Save Sloat.

Green Day setlist and videos from show posted here.

San Francisco Chapter Vice Chair Michael Stewart and Sustainable Surf greened the Rip Curl Pro Search. Check it out:

Surfrider Foundation Partners With The 2011 Honda Civic Tour

YAY, Surfrider! Just read this in the weekly e-newsletter (SOUP, Issue 122) sent out by the Surfrider HQ office in San Clemente, CA:



We're going on tour! Surfrider Foundation has been invited to go on the 2011 Honda Civic Tour this fall with Blink-182 & My Chemical Romance! Surfrider will be partnering with Reverb, a company dedicated to creating "green" tours (in the past they have worked with Jack Johnson & the Dave Matthew's Band). Our goal is to engage fans and raise awareness regarding environmental issues such as single-use plastics and water quality. Click the link below to purchase tickets and support Surfrider, or sign up to volunteer at a concert event!

I dug up the tour schedule ...

8/5/11 PNC Bank Arts Center
Holmdel, NJ w/ Manchester Orchestra
8/6/11 Nikon at Jones Beach Theater
Wantagh, NY w/ Manchester Orchestra
8/7/11 Nikon at Jones Beach Theater
Wantagh, NY w/ Alkaline Trio
8/9/11 Comcast Center
Boston, MA w/ Manchester Orchestra
8/11/11 Darien Lake Performing Arts Center
Buffalo, NY w/ Manchester Orchestra
8/12/11 Jiffy Lube Live
Bristow, VA w/ Manchester Orchestra
8/13/11 Hershey Park Pavilion
Hershey, PA w/ Manchester Orchestra
8/14/11 The Comcast Theatre
Hartford, CT w/ Manchester Orchestra
8/16/11 ^ Bell Centre
Montreal, QC w/ Manchester Orchestra
8/17/11 ^ Molson Canadian Amphitheatre
Toronto, ON w/ Manchester Orchestra
8/19/11 Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre
St. Louis, MO w/ Manchester Orchestra
8/20/11 First Midwest Bank Pavilion
Chicago, IL w/ Manchester Orchestra
8/21/11 Riverbend Music Center
Cincinnati, OH w/ Manchester Orchestra
8/23/11 Marcus Amphitheater
Milwaukee, WI w/ Manchester Orchestra
8/25/11 ^ MTS Centre
Winnipeg, MB w/ Rancid, Against Me! *
8/26/11 ^ Credit Union Centre
Saskatoon, SK w/ Rancid, Against Me! *
8/27/11 ^ Rexall Place
Edmonton, AB w/ Rancid, Against Me! *
8/28/11 ^ Saddledome
Calgary, AB w/ Rancid, Against Me! *
8/30/11 ^ Save-On Foods Memorial Centre
Victoria, BC w/ Rancid, Against Me! *
8/31/11 ^ Rogers Arena
Vancouver, BC w/ Rancid, Against Me!
9/1/11 White River Amphitheater
Seattle, WA w/ Rancid
9/3/11 USANA Amphitheater
Salt Lake City, UT w/ Rancid
9/4/11 Comfort Dental Amphitheater
Denver, CO w/ Rancid
9/7/11 Xcel Energy Center
Minneapolis, MN w/ Matt and Kim
9/8/11 Wells Fargo Arena
Des Moines, IA w/ TBA
9/9/11 Sandstone Amphitheater
Kansas City, MO w/ Matt and Kim
9/10/11 Verizon Wireless Music Center
Indianapolis, IN w/ Matt and Kim
9/11/11 DTE Energy Music Theatre
Detroit, MI w/ Matt and Kim
9/13/11 Blossom Music Center
Cleveland, OH w/ Matt and Kim
9/15/11 First Niagara Pavilion
Pittsburgh, PA w/ Matt and Kim
9/16/11 SPAC
Saratoga, NY w/ Matt and Kim
9/17/11 Susquehanna Bank Center
Camden, NJ w/ Matt and Kim
9/18/11 Farm Bureau Live at Virginia Beach
Virginia Beach, VA w/ Matt and Kim
9/20/11 Charlotte Verizon Wireless Amphitheater
Charlotte, NC w/ Matt and Kim
9/21/11 Aarons Amphitheatre at Lakewood
Atlanta, GA w/ Matt and Kim
9/23/11 Cruzan Amphitheater
West Palm Beach, FL w/ Matt and Kim
9/24/11 1-800-ASK-GARY Amphitheatre
Tampa, FL w/ Matt and Kim
9/26/11 Woodlands Pavilion
Houston, TX w/ Matt and Kim
9/27/11 Gexa Energy Pavilion
Dallas, TX w/ Matt and Kim
9/29/11 Hard Rock Casino Albuquerque Presents: The Pavilion
Albuquerque, NM w/ Matt and Kim
9/30/11 Tempe Beach Park Amph.
Phoenix, AZ w/ Matt and Kim *
10/1/11 Honda Center
Anaheim, CA w/ Matt and Kim
10/2/11 Sleep Train Amphitheatre
Sacramento, CA w/ Matt and Kim
10/5/11 Shoreline Amphitheatre
Mountain View, CA w/ Matt and Kim
10/7/11 Red Rock Resort, Spa & Casino
Las Vegas, NV w/ Matt and Kim
10/8/11 Hollywood Bowl
Los Angeles, CA w/ Matt and Kim
10/28/11-10/30/11 (Exact Date TBD) VOODOO Music Experience 2011
New Orleans, LA

Cloud Cult at Black Cat 5/28

Cloud Cult brought their multi-media show back to DC last weekend at the Black Cat. DC Surfrider’s MOP was happy to join them and talk OCEANS to folks at the show. We didn’t talk to a lot of folks (slow night for some reason!) but we had a good time and the show was great. Thanks to Gayathri Sriskanthan and Shelley Alingas for volunteering to be at the show! Huge thanks to Connie Minowa of Cloud Cult who got us on the guest list—thanks Connie!

Brett Dennen and Reverb at 930 Club

Brett Dennen was at the 9:30 Club last Saturday the 21^st of May and DC Surfrider’s Music Outreach Program was on hand to talk ocean pollution to concert attendees. Big thanks to Kate Brennan for taking the reigns, as I was out of town—great job Kate! Apparently Brett let all of the volunteers come backstage. He put on a great show despite being out all day picking up trash and playing an outdoor mini-concert at DC Surfrider and Barefoot Wines’s clean up at Anacostia Skate Pavilion. Huge thanks to Reverb for letting Surfrider be a part of this event!

Xavier Rudd at 9:30 Club

DC Surfrider’s Music Outreach Program was on hand for Xavier Rudd’s show at the 9:30 Club last Friday night. Thanks to Kate Brennan for volunteering! It was her first time representing Surfrider but she did a great job. HoneyHoney opened for Xavier and put out a great round of warm stompy blues. Xavier Rudd brought his tribal beats and signature didgeridoos. The crowd ate it up.

At the Surfrider table we talked to a good amount of fans, and signed up some people for our campaign against plastic bags in Virginia and Maryland. Altogether a great evening of music and talking oceans! Thanks again to Christi Thompson at Thompson Artist Management and Sarah Flynn with Xavier Rudd for hooking Surfrider up with this great show!

Rob Machado's Melali: The Drifter Sessions - Slim's SF, 4/12/11

by Brooke Tessman, Surfrider SF Chapter Volunteer


On Tuesday night, Neel Singh, Adam Weiner, Rachel Kippen and I arrived to a crowded house at Slim's in San Francisco. We had the opportunity to set up the Surfrider outreach table in a prominent position close to the front door.

We, along with everyone else, were here to see opening band, Con Brio, and Rob Machado's Melali: The Drifter Sessions. The crowd hushed as the band performed live, and in sync, as The Drifter Sessions surf film ran in the background. A truly mesmerizing experience...

(From Left to Right) Adam, Rob Machado, Rachel, & Brooke

Here's a link to Melali: The Drifter Sessions Surf Film and Music Tour Dates:

http://www.robmachado.com/thelatest.asp

Throughout the night, current Surfrider members stopped by our table to say hello, along with a lot of new folks looking to learn more about our organization. We had about 25 folks (of all ages) sign up and ask to receive our Surfrider newsletter. In between sets, Sunny (see photo inset of Brooke, Sunny, Rachel) stopped by to sign up for our raffle in the hopes of winning our reusable Surfrider bag. Sunny has already been surfing for a year and a half...go Sunny!

Brooke, Sunny, and Rachel

Thanks to everyone for your continued support of Surfrider and yet another successful show. Special thanks to Tracey Buck of Slim's for helping to coordinate the show. We look forward to working with Slim's again in the near future!