Stay Calm is coming soon!

Hey folks;
Jen has been kind enough to post on our behalf about the upcoming STAY CALM: Celebrating the life of Shannon Larratt memorial here in Philadelphia, but since I’m going to be posting on ModBlog when the whim strikes (mostly history content. There’s no school like the Old School) I figured now would be as good a time as any to post my first post and what better subject than the event that’s coming up soon!

Here’s the basic rundown:
The Philadelphia area IAM community- known for the last 13 years as ‘the Weirdos’- were always one of the most active IAM groups and when our friend passed away, we decided to throw a small get together to say our respects and our goodbyes. We figured that we’d get around thirty of our old friends, kick back at a bar and tell some stories and raise our glasses.

It’s sort of grown beyond thirty people; to date there are slightly over 200 folks making the trek to Philly by car, bus and plane. The Stay Calm planners have arranged a full day of fun- a family friendly park visit on the morning of 27th April leading into a wild night at Philadelphia’s only Leather Bar (which is owned by IAM members) that’ll feature raffles, drinks (both virgin and alcoholic) and a whole lot of fun.

Once we saw how many people were coming, I reached out to our amazing friends and asked for goodies that we could raffle off- with 100% of the profits going directly to Ari Larratt. They responded generously.

Our sponsors include:
Jimmy Buddha/Diablo Organics
Maya
Anatometal
Bishop Organics
Scylla Body Designs & Corsetiere
Gorilla Glass
Luis Garcia @ No Ka Oi
Diabolik DVD
Bella Vendetta
Rites of Passage
A ‘glider heart’ implant + procedure by Brian Decker
Scarification by John Joyce, Efix Roy and Ryan Ouellette
Jewelry (multiple manufacturers) courtesy of John Joyce/Scarab
Original Painting by Twitch
Tattoo gift cards from Off the Map Tattoo
Glider Heart Pendant by Jeremy Smith
… and more!

We’ve also got an AMAZING 18×24 hand screened print (printed in Philadelphia by Awesome Dudes Printing) by legendary poster artist Johnny Thief (pictured above) for sale, and again- 100% of profits go directly into Ari Larratt’s savings account.

If you’ve never been to a BMEfest, Bowling with Weirdos, East Coast BBQ- the events that helped shaped the IAM community- we’d love it if you could make it out and see what all the fuss is about. If you haven’t been to one in years… now’s the best time to come back home.

We have a Facebook RSVP page here that has up to date information on room and ride shares, local Philly tourist information and more as well as our event specific Stay Calm blog.

Thanks for having me here on ModBlog, and I’ll be seeing you all real soon!