By Joshua DeJong The Wild Buffalo House of Music raised nearly $1000 for the Bellingham Food Bank at its charity event, Lifted, Saturday, Jan. 7. The event featured the reunion of a collection of Bellingham electronic music DJ’s called Bass Area Crew. Media production company Sensebellum provided the lighting and stage design. All money collected at the door was donated to the food bank. Trevor Weidenbacher, event manager and Sensebellum light technician, also known by his stage name DJ FXL, said $940 was raised. The Bellingham Food Bank serves nearly 20 percent of Bellingham’s residents, many of whom are children and senior citizens, according to its website. The bank helps feed roughly 1,200 families each week. If people can take an event like that and positively impact those in need, all the hard work that goes into the event is worth it, Weidenbacher said. He also enjoys creating an environment where people can have fun, dance and let off some steam. “If we raise $100, that’s 1000 pounds of food for these people all around us,” Weidenbacher said. Fund drives are extremely beneficial to food banks because they can purchase more food than what most people can, according to the food bank’s website. This means every dollar can be used to its full potential when they purchase food. Patrick Cassidy, known on stage as DJ SWRV, said giving back is one of the primary reasons he continues to DJ. “I had a realization that one of the greatest ways to help people is to inspire them,” Cassidy said. Events like Lifted create a unique experience that inspires others to live life fully, and when people are living fully, they help others, especially those in the Bellingham community, Cassidy said. He enjoys working with the food bank because they are geared toward helping others. While some other charities might not use their funds appropriately, the Bellingham Food Bank has been clear about where their money goes, Cassidy said. “The Bellingham Food Bank is very transparent from what I understand,” Cassidy said. “They like to share their information of how they spend their money, so I totally support giving to someone who is transparent like that.” Looking toward the future, Weidenbacher said the Bass Area Crew desires to host more charitable events, and hopefully do a Lifted event every few months. Weidenbacher has done work with other charities, and said he hopes to do one in the future to benefit the Bellingham Girls Rock Camp, a charity he is passionate about. “It is a music education and social empowerment program for young women,” Weidenbacher said. “It’s a great program because you can look around and know that there’s not enough women in the music industry.” While no more Lifted events have a set date, Weidenbacher said they are planning for more benefit concerts in the future.
