Dance 89.5 Dances Against Hunger

By Jade Fisher, Communications Specialist

In the Lord of the Rings, the inspiring Samwise Gamgee once said of dark and dangerous times, “A new day will come, and when the sun shines, it'll shine out the clearer. I know now folks in those stories had lots of chances of turning back, only they didn't. They kept going because they were holding on to something. That there's some good in this world, Mr. Frodo, and it's worth fighting for."

I keep that quote in the back of my head these days because there's a lot of heavy stuff out there. What keeps me going is people coming together to do something about the hard things in life.

DJ Lowkeydinthehouse says, “I DJ at a lot of unconventional spots like a bakery and a mall. This was a cool opportunity to get out of the club and do community service"

Dance 89.5, a local dance station, partnered with us to create a positive space where people could do exactly that. Instead of feeling bogged down by the muck of it all, we spent a whole day while the food bank was closed to the public, preparing No Cook bags and Home Delivery bags that will go home with hundreds of people in the next week. All while getting down to some insanely good tunes.

While house music hypnotically bumps over speakers set up in our No Cook station, Billy from Dance 89.5 tells me he "loves music but also works on things for the greater good." It's why there's so much positive intention with the music they play at Dance 89.5. He believes setting this positive tone allows people to go on to do bigger and better things.

Dance 89.5 has been around for over 50 years and started as a way for students at Nathan Hale High School to learn about the science of radio. Now it's an international dance music powerhouse. And a very fun fact: they were the first radio station in the United States to play Lady Gaga. They took a chance on her new and unique song "Poker Face" and even invited the upcoming artist to perform in the Nathan Hale Performing Arts Center.

Billy gets behind the booth!

As I chat with Billy, he points to a couple in front of us methodically opening up brown bags to insert another inside of (these double bags are used for our Home Delivery program). He says they're an ICU nurse and a high school biology teacher. He says that "maybe people wouldn't think they're huge fans of EDM but they are because it's invigorating and energizes them. They do hard jobs and this music lifts them up to be able to do those jobs."

EDM is the hook for Billy but there's more to give and with his audience he wants to line them up for opportunities. Great opportunities like connecting with community! Billy has a personal drive in everything he works on and does. He's a father of two and lives in a place with a wide economic range so he's seen his kiddos' friends and kids his kids age who come over and play but live in cars. It's why he's so enthusiastic to work with Ballard Food Bank!

The day was split into two shifts (10-12:30PM and 1:30-4PM) and about 50 people attended in total. As I ask around, most folks heard of the event while jamming to radio tunes in their cars. And pretty much everyone was excited to hear live dj sets from the iconic DJ Trent Von (who was approached by one volunteer who shared he's been listening to him since the 90's!) and the endlessly talented DJ Lowkeydinthehouse (who I enjoyed thoroughly and approached asking for song names more than once.)

Their excitement for good music was equally rivaled by their excitement to do good in the community. The positive impact of helping neighbors facing food insecurity was infectious. Levi, an employee of HopeLink which offers social services including food supports, held immense gratitude for being in the space. Though he's not a front-facing service provider at his job, he felt a great change of pace by being able to do hands on work to prepare our food programs for the next week of services.

Nathan and India pack No Cook bags that offer ready-to-eat items to our neighbors who don’t have access to kitchens

Father-daughter duo Nathan and India were excited to finally make it out to a Dance 89.5 event. It just worked with their schedule and they learned SO much about the food bank. They weren't familiar with us at first but Nathan was in awe at the amount of services provided in one space. Nathan says his work place encourages volunteering regularly but he hasn't been to a place quite like Ballard Food Bank in his work-sponsored volunteer time. He's impressed with the services beyond food and says "they might seem small [like mail] but it means so much to the people using these services." India also shares that she's going off to college in the fall for her freshman year and thinks this event was a great way to gain experience working with people and food!

Adrianna and Whit are an energetic duo knocking each task out of the park with their speed and joy as they dance simultaneously. Adrianna says EDM is their favorite music and they're happy to combine that live music element with helping out in the community. Whit says of food access work, that they're happy to help especially right now when kids aren't getting the food they need and it's just generally important to feed people.

Greg brings the energy into our Community Market!!!

The joy of the day isn't just confined to Ballard though. Greg bounces around to each beat while he answers my questions and says this experience is inspiring him to be a regular volunteer at his local food bank in West Seattle. He says, "I'm glad you guys are here and I hear there's a high need so I'm happy to be in the community to help." This volunteer day is a snowball effect of helping neighbors!

It really showed that people are itching to find opportunities where they can feel more connected to their neighbors and do some good. People want to focus on the good. Chris says he's wanted to volunteer for a while and heard this on the radio, "I just like to give to people in need and people who aren't in need too. And really we all need to eat, right?" He used to do Friday night supper in Boston which prepared meals for folks facing food insecurity. He was happy to continue the work here.

DJ Trent Von talks more about the good that comes out of hard times, "It is really cool. I dig it. It's nice to know it's here. There was a lot of awareness during the pandemic and a general link to the public. And now it's nice to see it's still viable in this economy. It makes me think we'll get through this!"

Everyone at the event is extremely friendly and happy to be there. Against a backdrop of rising food insecurity, there's a real tidal wave of neighbors feeling inspired to do good in their communities. To band together, dance it out, and inspire each other to continue showing up for others. This work and these volunteers are the good things I hold onto. And I hope it also helps you refrain from turning back. I hope it helps you see that there are good things worth fighting for. And that your neighbors are fighting alongside with you.