The Vera Project Annual Report for 2011 summarizes the organization's activities and accomplishments over the previous year. It discusses that Vera is celebrating its 10-year anniversary of repealing Seattle's Teen Dance Ordinance. In 2011, over 60,000 people participated in Vera's programming such as shows, festivals, galleries, education programs and more. Vera helped young people gain skills and experience to become leaders in Seattle's cultural sector. The report provides statistics on Vera's programming numbers and partnerships in 2011.
3. We are now on the heels of our ten-year anniversary, and this August will also
mark the ten-year anniversary of repealing Seattle’s Teen Dance Ordinance. Make
no mistake, the story of the two are inseparable. But while the shadow of the
draconian “TDO” is now truly behind us, the story of Vera is here to stay, and we
continue to write it every day. Right now - because of Vera and because of your
advocacy - young people in Seattle are more integral to our local culture than
ever. Seattle is a city of music, and a city of politics – and ten years ago we invited
young people into our city’s very unique civic discourse.
With your help, we’ve become far more than an all-ages music venue. In 2011
more than 60,000 people took part in Vera in some way: whether attending
shows or producing them, curating gallery installations or writing our annual
budget. After eleven years, Vera alumni are now using the experience
and reputation they’ve built to step into positions of leadership at cultural
organizations, festivals, art galleries and music venues throughout the city and
across the nation. They are touring nationally and internationally with bands as
tour managers and sound producers. They are running their own record labels,
non-profits and businesses. With skills that match their enthusiasm, they are
transforming the creative landscape of Seattle.
While this brief report can share only so few of their stories, this new talented
and capable generation will define the culture of our city in the years to come.
We hope you are as inspired by them as we are. When you support Vera you are
making an investment in them, and we can’t thank you enough for that.
Welcome to Vera’s 2011 Annual Report!
4. Membership
Vera’s membership is an all-ages governing
body that works in collaboration with the
Board of Directors to lead the organization.
Members help create and review programs,
raise money, promote events, and make the
decisions that determine Vera’s future. From
leading the budget development process
to founding an open mic series, Vera’s
Members were more active than ever in both
program development as well as fiduciary
oversight. Vera had 100 people participate in
Membership over course of the year, across
11 different committees.
Shows
As part of Vera’s express goal to fuel
personal development and aid in the positive
transformation of our community through
popular music shows, 2011 opened with
renewed dedication to booking a wide
range of genres and styles. From hosting the
legendary Zero Boys and Cro-Mags for the multi-venue hardcore event Sound
Fest to welcoming self taught musician and rapper Mac Miller on his first west
coast tour, Vera continued to create an all inclusive participatory atmosphere
through our booking. Building off of our reputation, we were able to offer local
bands a platform to play with national acts such as Vivian Girls and No Joy.
Other notable shows include Olivia Tremor Control, Brite Futures, R Stevie Moore,
Shellac, David Choi, Joan of Arc and Starfucker.
2011 Program Highlights
5. Silkscreen
In June we worked on a few massive
short runs including a promotional
materials for Verizon and Cafe
Vita’s Coffee House Series of Shows,
producing 4 color process t-shirts and
a working closely with renowned local
music artist Art Chantry to produce
a series of posters. Vera offered a 6
week intensive joint workshop with
Modern Dog’s Michael Strassburger
for Center School, helping them
produce a series of art prints for fund
raising purposes while teaching the
fundamentals of printing making and
Serigraphy (screen printing). Over the
summer we hosted the Vera/Vera
Exchange and Art show, where we
welcomed Portland artist Guy Burwell
and two amazing guest designers
Mirjam Dijkema, and Kunny Van Der
Ploeg from our namesake The Vera
Club in Groningen, Netherlands. For
five days they attended the American Poster Institute Convention (Flatstock) at
Bumbershoot and showcased over 400 posters from The Vera Club in our own
gallery, some dating back to the mid 80’s, and a reception for the artists. We
held a knowledge exchange, printing demo, and seminar where our guests
explained the history and evolution the Groningen venue, their individual
approaches to design and artistic process, and bravely fielded questions from a
group of people that did not speak Dutch.
Gallery
Continuing in the tradition of previous years, our gallery forged strong
partnerships with Seattle Girls School and Nova through renewed outreach,
facilitating a commitment to an annual show from both schools. In addition to
local talent, our artist calls are reaching artists all throughout the Pacific North
West and beyond. This year we featured Ghost Ghost Teeth from LA and two
artists from Portland, lending to a greater palate of varied instillations. Proud of
our 2011 showcase, the Gallery Committee is excited to present the 2012 gallery
schedule with continued focus on presenting a professional space that attracts
both emerging and more established talent. Some highlights of our 2011 roster
include Vera’s own 10 year Birthday Party, our Dutch sister venue’s poster show
during Bumbershoot, A Tale of Two Sisters which lead to a permanent piece on
our gallery wall, and A Painter, A Printer and A Sculpture walk into a Bar.
6. Audio/Tech Program
The Audio Committee installed a new Mackie
HDA Line Array sound system, generously
donated by Loud Technologies and we’re
sounding better than ever! – Class Numbers
– We reconfigured and relaunched our studio
classes – lots of great albums recorded at the
Vera project in 2011 – had a great amazing better
than ever festival season Vera produced stages
at Bumbershoot/CHBP/Bike In/Cairo Expo 86/
URBN on Bdway Showcase/ Folklife – Recorded
lots of amazing shows in 2011 including: R. Stevie
Moore, blah blah – did something with NWFF
loaning PA for whatever event (ask Tristan)
I guess Lighting classes started, Advanced
classes for Silkscreening and the Recording
Studio were a hit. A new sound system donated
from Mackie was installed.
Festivals
2011 was another great festival season for the Vera Project - kicking off with a
consistently packed NW Folklife Festival. In July Vera curated the Vera stage at
Capitol Hill Block Party. The stage in 2011 featured a diverse lineup full of both
local, national, and emerging artists. Hip-hop group THEESatisfaction headlined
one of the days alongside young artists like Sol, Craft Spells and Beat Connection.
Grindcore group Skarp reunited for one of their first shows in years at Block Party,
and national artists like Baths, and Teen Daze closed out other days of the fest.
The festival season came to an end with a brilliant Bumbershoot and the Vera
hosted Free Yr Radio stage. The Free Yr Radio stage not only featured exciting
young artists but also gave Vera volunteers the opportunity to conduct interviews
with them right after their set. Artists like Allen Stone, Lemolo, and The Lonely
Forest played the stage and were interviewed by Vera volunteers.
7. 60,342 2011 Total Participation for All Programming
57,099 Shows, Festivals, Gallery Events
Mainstage Shows, Non-Music Events, “The Series”
Shows, “Veracity” Shows, Festivals & Offsite Events,
Art GalleryOpenings
1,550 Volunteer Positions Filled
Total Members (throughout yr), Total Volunteers, Volunteer
Orientations, Member Meetings, Steering Committee
Meetings, Program Committee Meetings
1,693 Education Opportunities
Silkscreen Studio Classes and Usage, Live Sound Classes,
Recording Studio Classes, Lighting Classes, Internships
ALL TIME
297,995 Total Participants
37,995 Total hours volunteer service
2,350 Number of bands
2011 Programming Numbers
8. 206 Zulu
206inc/Free Yr Radio
ACLU of WA state
All-Ages Movement Project
AmeriCorps - City Year
Art4Justice - YMCA
Art Institute
Association of WA Business
Ballard High School
Bend-It Festival
Capitol Hill Block Party
Center School
Cleveland High School
EMP Sound Off
Franklin High School
General Assembly
Hidmo
Hollow Earth Radio
Indian Association of WA
Ingraham High School
Leadership Tomorrow
Left Bank Books / Anarchist Book Fair
Mayor’s Seattle Music Commission
National Film Festival for Talented Youth
(NFFTY)
NW Folklife
NW Men’s Project
NOVA High School
One Reel - Youth Advisory Committee,
Bumbershoot Festival
Pecha Kucha Night - Seattle
Queer Youth Space / Three Wings
Reteaching Gender & Sexuality / Put
This on the {MAP}
Richard Hugo House
Rock School
Sanctuary Art Center
Sasquatch! Music Festival
School of Rock
SeaSk8 Skatepark
Seattle Girls’ School
Seattle International Comedy
Competition
Seattle Tattoo Expo
Seattle Youth Commission (Mayor’s
Office)
SIFF
Skate Like A Girl
Starbucks Hot Java Cool Jazz
The Hip-Hop Summit Youth Council
2011 PARTNERS
Seattle has a wealth of amazing organizations led by or working on behalf of
young people. Partnering with these groups is essential to achieving our vision of
a truly participatory all-ages music and arts community. Vera had the chance to
partner with so many organizations in 2011 that we couldn’t fit all of them in this
report! Here are just a few highlights...
9. 2011 Members
Sonya Arbuckle
Rebecca Armstrong
Lindsey Baggette
Alex Ballenger
Rani Ban
Alex Beard
Jessica Burg
Eric Carnell
Heydi Carter
Brian Cervino
Jared Cheshire
Fiona Cheung
Chase Clancy
Domenica Clark
Eduardo Contreras
Emma Cotter
Sara Cullen
Chiara D’Angelo
David Dawes
April Dembeck
Brecken Diller
Dan Droz
Donna Dudley
Kevin Erickson
Andre Estournes
Angie Evins
Rosie Faulkner
Jaimee Garbacik
Rowdy Gleason
David Gordon
Ian Gwin
Danae Hackett
Emily Hardy
Starr Harris
Brandie Henry
Nick Herold
Tom Heuser
Annie Holden
Kisha-Marie Jones
Meerea Kang
Henry Kaye
Colin Kelley
Alison Kreitzberg
Jasmin Kwan
Lorissa La
Michael Lane
Raya Leary
David Lewis
Julia Lipscomb
Matt Long
Bre Lucero
Travis Maisch
Monica Martinez
Marc Mazique
Naomi McCain
Brad Mohoric
Kristina Moravec
Sam Neu
Karin Nord
Sequoia O’Connell
Robert Peterson
Alex Pincus
Amy Pinon
Carli Plute
Chris Reath
Jess Rees
Justin Renard
Stephanie Riedl
Ryan Rood
Scott Schroeder
Lena Severns
Theo Shure
Johnathan Smith
Dana Snyder
Eric Stewart
Katie Swain
Willow Tacla
Kara Tronsen
Quixote Vassilakis
Christopher Wiggin
Barrett Wilkowski
Leigh Woody
Chester Zeller
NW Chocolate Festival
The Service Board
UmojaFest Peace Center
Vain Hair Salon
vitaminwater
WA Bus
WA Lawyers for the Arts
Youth In Focus
YouthCare - Orion Center
Zine Archive Publishing Project (ZAPP)
Partial Partnership List (from DFUj):
All Ages Movement Project
Nova High School
Hollow Earth Radio
Bumbershoot / OneReel
Folklife
Sasquatch
Learning Center North
Seattle Youth Employment Program
Urban Outfitters
Seattle Art Museum
Shunpike
Vera Groningen
Zine Archive Publishing Project / Hugo
House
10. 2011 was another challenging financial year. With the exit of two of our three
director level staff (Development Director and Managing Director), and a
continuing poor fundraising climate, Vera worked especially hard to remain
stable throughout the year. While we were unable to meet our ambitious budget
goals set early in the year, we have since recalibrated and are finding ourselves
back on track to sustainability.
(Complete annotated financial statements are available on our website,
theveraproject.org/about)
Vera Financials 2011
11. 2011 Revenue
Total Revenue
Actual: $630,595
Budgeted: $729,115
Earned Income $215,000
In-Kind $63,000
Public Funds $61,000
Foundation $68,000
Corporate $31,000
Individual & Matching $102,000
Fundraising Events $92,000
2011 Expenses
Total Expenses
Actual: $702,509
Budgeted: $766,735
Fundraising $78,000
Overhead $115,000
Programming $509,000
12. Vera Donors
$1 to $99
Aaron Davis
Aaron Wilson
times new roman
Alison Kreitzberg
Amy Gedgaudas
Amy Williams
Andrew Gaines
Angie Evins
Anne Compton
Anonymous (6)
Ari Spool
Arnold Anderson
Bebe Besch
Benjamin Atkinson
Beverleisha Easton
Brandon Pemberton
Brian LaMacchia
Britt Cornett
Bryley Hull
Calvin Timmons
Cari Simson
Carolyn Stein
Causecast Foundation
Chang Choi
Charles Spitzack
Cheryl Woodruff
Chiaryn Miranda
Chris Glein
Cliff Freed
Dan McConnell
Danae Hackett
Danica Celix
Dave Vander Maas
David Bordoley
David Dinh
David Gallo
David Loffing
Dean Carson
Deborah Diamant
Diane Caillier
Diane Sanford
Dustin Fujikawa
Dwight Sims
Elaine Simons
Elen Jarolimek
Elizabeth Chapman
Emily Kyle
Eric Augino
Fariba Fuller
Ferdinand Franz
Gail Maisch
Gary Compton
Grover Mcdiarmid
Heather Campbell
Holly Hinton
Jacob Burd
Jacob Lundwall
Jan Simon Aridj
Janet Makela
Jared Spool
Jason Baxter
Jeffery McNulty
Jeffrey Copeland
Jennifer Hayes
Jennifer Joyce
Jenny Asarnow
Jenny Wu
Jerin Falkner
Jessica Burg
Jessica Wagoner
Joanne Dunham
Jodie Nelson
John Fulton
Jon Stone
Jonathan Zwickel
Kamran Razvan
Karen Kaushansky
Karen Veloria
Kathleen Evans
Kathleen Fujikawa
Keith Becker
Keith Simanton
Kevin Heard
Kevin Quaid
Kiah Patzkowsky
Kimberley Miller
Kristina Ringland
Lara Kidoguchi
Larry Winn
Larry Yocom
Lawrence Fuell
13. Linda Leon
Lisa Bond
Margery Aronson
Mark Sage
Martha Rader
Martin Blank
Matt Redmon
Matt Shapiro
Meghan Carlson
Michael Howshar
Michael Hytinen
Michael Seiwerath
Michelle Knott
Mike Meckling
Nancy Mabbott
Nasir Rasheed
Natasha Peterson
Nick Herold
Nicole Kelly
Owen Richards
Pamela Koss
Patrick Wolff
Patty Eshenko
Paula Kieko
Peggy Weiss
Rachael Costa
Ramon Esquivel
Ranae Holland
Rebecca Sager
Rebecca Sager
Rick Stevenson
Robert Franza
Robert Gregory
Robert Nellams
Robert Peterson
Robin Romeo
Rosemary Pham
Rowdy Gleason
Ryan Rood
Sara Brickman
Sarah Sternau
Scott Baldwin
Scott Goodrich
Sean Kram
Shannon Lacek
Shannon Stewart
Shawn Hansen
Sheila Capestany
Sid Peterson
Stefanie Smith
Stephanie Stebich
Steven Abel
Steven Cochran
Steven Kalberg
Sue Ennis
Sue Martin
Susan Evans
Susan O’Neil
Syra Morii
Tamara Romero
Terri Hintz
Thomas Jarvis
Timothy Rash
Toby Crittenden
Tom Heuser
Travis Maisch
Travis Phelps
Travis Rautman
Tristan Carosino
Vanessa Gibbons
Victoria Ptak
Vikki Knudsen
$100 to $499
Aaron Semer
Abby Albreit
Adam Finn
Aimee Price
Ali Hedrick
Andrew Corey
Andrew Smith
Andy Schlauch
Ann Marie Ley
Ann Shure
Anna Schafer
Annette Bostwick
Anonymous
Anonymous
Barbara Sauermann
Ben London
Ben Olswang
Bernie Richards
Beth Purcel
Bill Lytle
Brad Brotherton
Bradford Chamberlain
Brandi Dorsett
Brian Shay
Brianne Anderson
Brittany Rossen
Bruce Fairweather
Bruno Cicirello
Caitlin Brower Moore
Carla Casale
Catherine Brewe
Cheryl Ediss
Cheryl Waters
Chris Hong
Chris Porter
Claudia Bach
Courtney Noble
Craig Brooks
Dan Bugge
Dan Roscigno
Dana Snyder
Danielle Henderson
Danielle Mitchell
David Cardell
David Dawes
David Karp
David Vandermass
Deborah Person
Dena Rigby
Denise Mamaril
DeYonne Tegman
Emily Throop
Eric Stewart
Forest Ridge School of
the Sacred Heart
G.T Johnson
Gib Aspen
Gloria Connors
Hayley Tapp
Hester Angus
Hope Rosen
Huong Vu
Ian Mackaye
Ingrid Martin
Inn at the Market
Ivan Smith
Jaime Chapelle
James Keblas
Jane Johnson
Jane Kaplan
Jennifer Hill Pollick
Jeremy Przasnyski
Jerry Anches
Jim Mullin
John White
Josh Ayala
Josh Peters
Julie Harrison
Kate Becker
Katey Miller
Kathy Lopez
Kay Yang
Kaz Maras
Keith Brewe
Kian Pornour
Kirsten Roe
Kitty Wu
Kristian Kofoed
Laura Guth
Marc Mazique
Mark Anderson
Mark Yoneyama
Martin Liebowitz
Martin Nemerever
Matt Seabrook
Matthew Dresdner
Megan Seling
Michael Bini
Michael Compton
Michael Lane
Michael Stephens
Michael Tobiason
Mike Klay
Morgan Schuler
Nancy Peppler
Noah Gotz
Patrick Valenzuela
Paul Breslin
Paul Hegdahl
Piper O’Neill
Rachel White Sawyer
14. Renee Peng
Richard Chatterton
Rick Bendix
Ron Sevart
Ryan Arai
Sally Clark
Sally Neu
Sarah Jurado
Sarah Sleight
Sarah Wilke
Sarina Roscigno
Sasha Morgan
Sashya Clark
Shawn Mcallister
Sridhar Kolar
Starr Harris
Stephanie Pure
Stephanie Riedl
Stuart Meyer
Sunny Hong
Tina Meadows
Vanessa Romo
West Seattle Books
$500 to $900
The 4 Point Café
Anonymous
Brock Gavery
Bull Run Distillery
Caffe Vita
Carol Brewe
David Osgood
Dorothy Stewart
Easy Street
Garth Brewe
Gary Virene
Hatties Hat
Jack Conway
Jeanne Allen
Joe Harbine
John and Amy Richards
John Boudreau
Josh Carroll
Josh Rosenfeld
Kate Jackson
Ken Lederman
Kevin Cole
Labatt USA
Lori Cora
Lorna Kneeland
Lynn Resnick
Martin Wolk
Megan Jasper
Michele Scoleri
Mikiah Fender
Nick Turner
Pagliacci Pizza
Riona Macnamara
Shaula Massena
Starbucks Coffee
Company
Steven P. Severin
Stone Gossard
Sue Bartlett
Terry Granillo
The Pony Bar
Thomas Goldstein
Tom Graves
Tony DiRe
$1,000 to $4,999
Aja Pecknold
Alex Rosenast
Angelina Saez
Anita Herling
Ann Sutphin
Anonymous
Billy O’Neill
Brecken Diller
Brittney Bollay
Brooke Benaroya
Capitol Hill Block Party
Chris Bellew
Chris Price
Christina Ellis
Dana Culbertson
Darren White
David Meinert
Dick Becker
Erik Ackermann
Fales Foundation Trust
Jaimee Garbacik
Jason Finn
Jerry Chiang
John E. and Elizabeth
Kurtz Foundation
John Roderick
Josh Powell
Kate Holman
Kate Jackson
Kevin Cole
Kim Berardi
Kristina Goetz and
Simon Henneman
Kurt Ackermann
Kyla Fairchild and Ron
Wilkowski
Leigh Sims
Linda’s Tavern
Louise Grose
Mark Yoneyama
Mary Bacarella
Michael McCahill
Monica Cary
Nathan Mendel
Racha Haroun
Rahwa Habte
Redwood
Rosie Torrance
Savita Pathi
Sean Cooper
Seattle Tattoo Convention
Shannon Roach
Shaula & Darrin
Massena
Susan Silver
Suzanne Thompson-
Turner
The Dick and Sharon
Friel Family Foundation
The Stranger
The Tides Foundation
Thomas Mara
Trish Scearce
Tulalip Tribes Charitable
Fund
Twilight Exit
Urban Outfitters
Vanguard Charitable
Endowment
Victoria Ptak
$5,000 - $9,999
4 Culture
Jason Lajeunesse
Jerry Everard
Kathy A. Jackson
Microsoft
One Family Foundation
Steven Franz
The Boeing Company
$10,000 & Up
Adobe Foundation
City of Seattle
Live Nation Worldwide/
Sasquatch Music Festival
McKibben/Merner
Family Foundation
Real Networks
Seattle Foundation
Sub Pop Records
The Shirley Foundation
15. Listening to Billy O’Neill’s talk about his life before he
met Dale Chihuly, one would be surprised that he is
one of the biggest arts supporters in Seattle, and a
great friend, advisory board committee member, and
donor to The Vera Project. Highlights of his stories are
filled with sports, coaching and being a skipper on a
boat. However, that boat belonged to glass artist Dale
Chihuly’s, and after the two met and got along really
well, one thing led to another, and now Billy is the Vice
President of Chihuly Studios, a company with 90 people
that works to execute Dale’s artistic vision.
Billy’s story of involvement with Vera starts with three friends of his: David Meinart,
James Keblas and Kate Becker. They asked him years ago to be a part of Vera,
and he finally found the perfect opportunity when the Chihuly Museum of Garden
and Glass (sp?) opened on the Seattle Center campus, right near The Vera
Project. After presenting the idea of the new museum to the Vera Board, Billy
really appreciated the honesty and warmness of everyone at Vera in response to
the new Chihuly space. Billy says that The Vera Project is an organization that the
more people learn about the Vera and what it does, the more people get excited
about it. He believes the most important part of Vera, is the huge role it plays in
access to youth and a point of entry for musicians, artists and people looking to
get involved in those industries.
Billy’s had a difficult time choosing his favorite Vera memory because they are
bountiful. From 2012’s A Drink for the Kids auction competition he had with James
Keblas, running around the bar, hustling auction items (complete with a Farrah
Fawcett mug) to getting to call friends during Give Big, explaining to his network
why they should be excited about, and donating to Vera, he really has had a
great time being involved. He ultimately won the auction competition, but Vera
wins by having Billy be a great asset to the organization.
Vera Stories : Billy O’Neill
16. Vera Stories : Lena Severns
As Lena Severns, a longtime valued member of the
Vera Project, departs for college in Massachusetts,
she cites (thes) Vera as one of the greatest measures
for her success in her life thus far. After discovering
Vera in 2008, at age 14, she decided to start
volunteering here, getting into shows for free and
gaining experience of real work in a music venue.
At a Talbot Tagora event including a white elephant
and a potluck, she met many of Vera’s valued staff,
and strove to get more involved. She applied for,
and got, the Outreach and Partnership Internship,
where she could learn valuable skills about planning
events, and the crucial aspect of partnership that exists in the non-profit world. This
experience prepared her for the next chapter in her life, attending Smith College,
more than anything in high school ever did. It also helped her start thinking about
her career, and her future life plans, at a young age.
On attending college, Lena was initially concerned about losing the wealth of great
all-ages shows in rural Massachusetts she’s grown accustomed to, living in Seattle.
However, she again cites (thes) The Vera Project as empowering her to see the
impact she can have on the world around her. She is now living in the mindset that
if there aren’t events or shows going on around her, she can organize them herself,
with the skills she’s learned through Vera. The biggest thing that Vera has given her
is the ethic of ‘if you don’t like what’s happening, then change it, because you can.’
“Vera has already helped me immensely with my future.”
– Lena Severns