Now Playing
Current DJ: Willie McDonagh
Cindy Lee Golden Microphone from Diamond Jubilee (Realistik) Add to Collection
The CHIRP Blog
Entries categorized as “Community” 81 results
The Audible Snail writesYou Only Came for the Punk Show: A Love Letter to the Empty Bottle
In the beer sweat recycled air of a punk show at the Empty Bottle in September 2019, you perch on the steps to the left of the stage, nursing your beer—the first IPA of the night after a long week of teaching 6th grade for the first time. You haven’t been to a punk show in a long time, and you haven’t been to a punk show by yourself in even longer. It feels like home, in that deer-lodge-human-heat of the first show you attended by yourself in Chicago 14 years earlier: Empty Bottle, October 19, 2005 — in a Jens Lekman “Maple Leaves” kind of way.
You aren’t sure if you are going to talk to anyone, and the small joke you try to make to the group of punks in their 20s standing behind you returns no response. You realize you are old at a punk show.
Thank goodness.
SKaiser writesGiving More Than Music
Cash for Kids--Chicago's only Johnny Cash Festival, is an annual fundraiser held at the Irish-American Heritage Center in support of the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation.
Last Saturday, the space between two stages filled with kids of all ages to hear Scott "S.A." Anderson, Chicago SaddleTramps, The Dark Passengers, Dry County Line, Hodie Snitch, Iron Horse, Kelsey & Owen, John Kimler, Maybe April, South Side Jake, Hayden Thompson, Torri and Marshall, The Waco Brothers with Jon Langford, plus Wild Erp & The Free For Alls.
Who do you know that is giving of their time and talents for the betterment of others? Here's another one: the 5th Annual Battle of the Bands will be held live at Subterranean on Thursday, February 13th. The event is being presented by Rebuiling Together Metro Chicago.
Five bands will battle it out in 30-minute sets with one audience-selected winner at the end of the show. The evening's festivities will benefit Rebuilidng Chicago's mission to preserve and revitalize Chicago communities. According to their mission statement, "in the spirit of volunteerism and community partnership, Rebuilding Together Metro Chicago improves the homes and neighborhoods of people in need so they may continue to live in warmth, safety and comfort."
CHIRP Radio is interested in hearing from you! Tell us about who is inspiring you through their good works. Email skaiser@chirpradio.org with details of community events and fundraisers in your neighborhood.
Iron Horse performs for the Cash for Kids fundraiser on Saturday, January 25th, 2020. (Aaron DaCorte: Guitar and Vocals, Carl DaCorte: Upright Bass and Vocals, Richard Klootwyk: Drums)
Photo credit: Jacob Veldhuizen
SKaiser writesAround Town: Hello November!
photo credit: Shawna Kaiser
SKaiser writesAround Town: Inspired
Some days are better than others when you're alive. It's tough being human. These days especially have a groundhog's day-esque feel. The grinding 24-hour news cycle, your job, relationships, taxes, heck don't forget, we all know what it's like. We're in this thing together. We can survive the uncertainty, the unknown. Because, every once in awhile, something catches your eye. A slight reminder life is grand. You're walking, and suddenly hey, I didn't know corn could grow anywhere. Or what about those signs springing up out of the blue with reminders that "you are beautiful." If you can relate, this week's Around Town: Inspired is dedicated to you. Take it easy out there, friends.
SKaiser writesAWOFINC
The work of Kenneth Wesbrooks in the Chicago community resounds in what holds the word together; unity. For over two decades, as the founder and chairman of A Work of Faith Ministries, Inc. (AWOFINC), he’s led a resourceful mission to meet the needs of families by empowering community members to “take back the village”.
It seems nothing can shake Wesbrooks’ vision. In a time when violence in the city can feel insurmountable he stands in the strength of people coming together, trusting in one another, creating relationships, and building success stories from the inside out.
When asked if he feels discouraged by one of the recent most violent weekends this summer, he said, “We partner our efforts with other organizations. We see violence as the primary symptom to greater community issues, such as housing or unemployment, and we reach out to organizations like Cure Violence who employ resources specific to gang-related violence.”