Oregon Food Bank’s 30th Waterfront Blues Festival is a Hit

Chris Isaak

Portland, OR. Music lovers at the Waterfront Blues Festival have donated more than 10 million dollars over the past 30 years. Since 1987, Oregon Food Bank has brought in headliners like Chris Isaak to raise funds and awareness to fight hunger in Oregon and Clark County, Washington. This year the Waterfront Blues Festival runs for five days, on four stages, and features more than 150 eclectic performances.

This is the Oregon Food Bank’s largest annual fundraising event, it is the largest blues festival west of the Mississippi, and the second-largest blues festival in the nation.

Click here for a link to the schedule, the festival runs through July 4th.

Here are some snapshots from the event so far.

Susannah Morgan, Oregon Food Bank CEO, thanks the crowd for feeding the human spirit for 30 years.

Fantastic Negrito

Ty Curtis

LoveBomb Go-Go

Elvin Bishop

Festival Director Clay Fuller and Artistic Director Peter Dammann have been feeding the Human Spirit for 30 years.

Headliners include: Big Head Todd Blues Club, Chris Isaak, Joss Stone, Galactic, Elvin Bishop, Fantastic Negrito, Canned Heat, JD McPherson, Bokante, Pine Leaf Boys, MarchFourth, Pimps of Joytime, Booker T Stax Revue, Cedric Burnside Project, and Sonny Landreth

Additional acts include: Chubby Carrier, Southern Avenue, Greyhounds, The Revelers, Blynd, Jontavious Willis, Brother Yusef, Dirty Bourbon River Show, Donna Angelle, Dustbowl Revival, Christone “Kingfish” Ingram, Eric Gales, The Suffers, Chris Cain, Monkey Junk, Sons of the Soul Revivers

From the Oregon Food Bank:

Our mission: To eliminate hunger and its root causes … because no one should be hungry.
Since 1982, Oregon Food Bank has been leading the fight against hunger in Oregon and southwest Washington by collecting and distributing food through a network of four OFB branches and 16 independent regional food banks.
The OFB Network helps nearly one in five households fend off hunger. OFB also leads statewide efforts to increase resources for hungry families and to eliminate the root causes of hunger through advocacy, nutrition education, garden education and helping communities strengthen local food systems.

Did you know …

For the first time ever, the Oregon Food Bank Network distributed more than 1 million food boxes to families in need – a 12% increase over last year.
Growing levels of long-term unemployment are forcing more and more people to fall into poverty and to seek emergency food.
33% of those receiving emergency food are children.
Children who are hungry get sick more often and have more trouble learning in school.

Elisa Klein

I’ve been a professional journalist and writer since 1987, (and long-time reporter for KOIN-TV.) As a nationally published reporter, with a Master’s Degree in Journalism, I love to report positive news and information. Journalism has also connected me with another non-profit where I served as a leader; the Northwest’s biggest writer’s organization: The Willamette Writers.