Posted on 20 January 2013 by La Habra Journal
By Sarah Negrete
La Habra Journal
Dirty Hammer performs at the 300 Bowl.
The La Habra community was able to rock for a cause Saturday night. Students of Help for Brain Injured Children Foundation (HBIC) benefited by the Punk N’ Bowl charity concert held at La Habra 300 Bowling alley.
Hundreds of people came to the bowling alley to donate $15 to the HBIC in exchange for an unlimited round of bowling and to watch all 6 punk bands performing in the bowling alley’s very own bar. General Manager Andrea Werren organizes a generous donation show once a month at the alley, and punk music is her genre choice to bring in the large attendance.
“Local punk bands always bring big groups of people. With this many people coming to see the bands play, combined with our efforts to donate to non-profit organizations is a great way to give back to the community of La Habra,” Werren said.
Gag and the staff members of the bowling alley reached out to the coordinators of HBIC about a year ago, informing them that they were willing to use their annual Punk N’ Bowl charity show to benefit their members this year. Since the members of the HBIC are frequently in and out of the bowling alley, staff members agreed that they were great candidates to receive the donation from this show.
Behavior Specialist for the HBIC’s Cleta Harder Developmental School (CHDS) Juan Benavides came to the punk show, excited about the generosity of the bowling alley, and eager to promote awareness about the HBIC.
“Always being able to bring members to the alley allows them to practicing community skills, and helps them with interacting with people in public,” Benavides said. “We want our kids not to be secluded, we want them to be integrated into the community.”
Many people were gathering outside, anticipating an exciting night with the unlimited bowling and punk performances. Punk band member and lead vocalist Spencer Gilpatrick of Dirty Hammer expressed great appreciation for the benefit show.
“Although this is our first time performing at this bowling alley, we have played benefit shows before. Playing in benefit for the HBIC feels great, and we would do this again, any time, any place,” Gilpatrick said.
The benefit show brought many people of all ages, and some even traveled from far to watch a good show and partake in the great deal of unlimited bowling for only the $15 donation. High school students from Huntington Beach Ian Pulsifer, and Duncan Boysinau drove all the way to La Habra last Saturday for the show.
“We are here for simply the music and bowling,” Boysinau said. “I brought money for the donation, which is cool because we can all bowl and listen to the band Radioactive Chicken Heads,” Pulsifer added.
In addition to the band members and the audience, some staff members felt it was nice to work at the only place in La Habra that brings punk music into the community for a good cause. “It’s an interesting show, with a good crowd,” said employee Anthony Valdivia. “Many kids are coming out to donate and to watch the bands we booked to perform in the back of our bar.”
The whole bowling alley was filled with fans of punk music and bowling, with each lane completely reserved for those who donated to the HBIC. The show was an all ages show, and surprisingly the alley comfortably accommodated the large groups who came to support the event. La Habra’s Punk N’ Bowl charity concert was definitely a creative and generous effort to give.
For more information on the Help for Brain Injured Children Foundation, visit their Facebook page or its website at www.hbic.org. For additional information of upcoming events at La Habra 300 Bowling Alley, visit www.lh300bowl.com.