Continuing our popular Chalk Talk series in which we sit down with various partners and community members to chat about what they're doing to help protect the world's natural awesome, we're also excited to begin featuring a Forecastle Foundation Sustainer of the Month! We'll now be highlighting our current Foundation Sustainers, getting to know them a little better, and finding out what inspired them to support the Foundation and its naturally awesome efforts!
Our first Sustainer of the Month is John Harris, we recently caught up with John to talk music, beer, and how he is helping to make the world naturally awesome!
John Harris - Forecastle Foundation Sustainer of the Month for January 2016
How old are you?
Just turned 50!
Are you from Louisville originally? If not, where are you from and what brings you here?
No. A little town of 100 people called Brushy Fork, WV. Came to Louisville in 1999 to run one of the family businesses.
What do you do for work?
We have a beer, wine and spirits wholesale operation in Louisville.
What is your favorite thing to do in each of the 4 seasons?
Ride any kind of bicycle – same answer for all 4 seasons
Where is your favorite place to eat in Louisville?
El Mundo
Who is your favorite band right now?
Kind of a tie between the Gourds and Dawes.
How did you hear about the Forecastle Foundation?
From my buddy JK.
Why did you decide to become a Sustaining member of the Forecastle Foundation?
Listening to JK talk about it over the years prompted me to investigate and attend one of his fundraising events. I found the Pine Mountain Project to be particularly interesting, especially given my small town roots.
What excites you about Forecastle Foundation?
I love the tie in with music. It provides a great way to reach a lot of people in a short period of time.
Have you encouraged others to get involved with the Foundation? If so how?
Yes. We (my wife and I) convinced our family’s philanthropic foundation to match our donation last year by explaining why we were excited about it.
How are you making the world more Naturally Awesome?
Well, JK and I got the chance to make a beer together last year at Sierra Nevada’s Beer Camp. We then used the beer to raise money for the foundation before and during the Forecastle festival last year. That seemed naturally awesome to me.