BIG CHANGES: NEW STAFF, NEW OFFICE
AMP has made the journey up the west coast to our new office in Seattle. We're located at The Vera Project's beautiful space at Seattle Center (and, by the way, we're extremely grateful to Vera for being such generous, gracious hosts). We drew you this map so you can find us!
We also are bidding a fond farewell to Shannon Stewart, AMP's founding director. Shannon has been an extraordinary leader with an inspiring capacity for bringing people together from diverse backgrounds to find common ground and Do It Together. More than anyone else, she's responsible for bringing AMP from the tiny seed of an idea to the first ever national network of youth music spaces & organizations. Her vision and determination is the reason we've gotten this far, and her contributions will continue to be felt nationwide for a very long time.
Taking the reins as co-director is Kevin Erickson, who comes to us from Anacortes, Washington where he spent almost three years running Department of Safety, an all-ages venue, gallery, and recording studio housed in the town's old fire & police station. Kevin also served on AMP's Advisory Board in 2007-2008, and is active as a writer, recording engineer, and musician.
We've got big plans for 2009, but Kevin's favorite part of working with AMP is hearing directly from folks all around the country about their projects, venues, and organizations, and providing whatever resources and support he can. If you've got questions, need help, or just want to say hi, please don't hesitate to get in touch!
NOW HIRING: DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR
Are you a fundraising pro? Do you have Warren Buffet on speed-dial? Has anyone ever called you the Toni Morrison of grantwriting? Do you want to combine your talent for digging up cash with your passion for participatory culture?
Come work for AMP! We're currently hunting for the right person to build financial support for youth music programming and all-ages infrastructure. This person will also oversee all fundraising activities of AMP while co-creating the organization's overall work plan and strategy.
Responsibilities include grantwriting, donor relations, fundraising planning and events, sustaining committee and general planning, evaluation and collaboration.
Starting at 25-30 hrs/wk. Possible benefits. Get the details at allagesmovementproject.org
THIS COULD BE OUR YEAR
We're a week into 2009 now, so how's that new year's resolution going?
My resolution to do daily upper body workouts has sort of stalled--my spiffy new "Iron Gym" chinup bar (pictured) won't even fit in the doorway like it's supposed to. A quick straw poll of friends and family has found similar results--it's hard to eat more salad, hard to switch to decaf, hard to find the time to take up knitting.
Well, here's a resolution you can keep: support AMP in 2009 by making a recurring donation each month.
We know that these are tough economic times. It's hard for musicians to afford to tour, and hard for venues to keep their doors open--this year witnessed venues shutting down from Scranton, PA to Kennewick, WA.. Local governments are facing budget shortfalls, and, unfortunately, arts and culture programs are often among the first to be deemed "inessential". We need to support each other more than ever.
And yet, this is a time of great opportuntity. We've got a new administration with an expressed interest in new models of youth civic engagement; and the national music media is starting to pay attention to the cultural contributions of all-ages scenes. It's crucial that we make our voices heard in 2009.
Donate TodayIf you're a student, an artist, or musician, consider pledging just $5 a month. If you're doing well enough to be able to give a little more--$10 or even $20 a month, that extra bit of resolve will be hugely helpful. And of course, your donations are fully tax deductable.
AMP has no corporate sponsors. We rely on people like you (yeah you) to fuel the all-ages movement.
Thanks.
Kevin & AMP