Guy Keltner is an established member of the Seattle and greater West Coast music scene. A leader of the American-bred garage band, Acid Tongue, co-founder of Freakout Records, founder of Freakout Music Festival, and commercial audio and soundtrack creator. In this session, Guy will be interviewed by Serafima Healy, Local Music coordinator at KUGS 89.3, co-founder of Concerts at the Castle, and local musician. Join them to learn about changes in the music industry and what the new future of live music may look like.

The Cat’s purrpose is to reverberate kinetic energy that’ll make you dance, sweat, smile and feel the love. Weaving house, techno, disco, funk and most other things, he creates a landscape of subtly provocative funk and romantic vibrations to purge your inhibitions and help you vibe on the truth of the here and meow.

In 2014, Jesse left his IT Executive career path in pursuit of entrepreneurship. While his new web design business was moving along as expected, he didn’t feel fulfilled by it. He felt called to give but just didn’t know where to start. After long conversations with his wife, family, friends, and co-founders Adam and Josh, Overflow Taps was born.

Sonja Ferkingstad is a designer currently based in Chicago. Recently graduating with a BFA from The School of The Art Institute of Chicago in the spring of 2020 her practice mainly consists of Interior and graphic design. Utilizing both digital and analog processes she aims to create work and spaces composed of simplified elements that are both bold and energetic. Her pieces often draw influence from her studies of 20th century design without specifically catering to one movement or decade resulting in contemporary works with a strong retro flair.

Hi, I’m Andrea Farrell. I am a WWU grad from Washington who works as a buyer and brand specialist for ModSock, a novelty sock company in Bellingham, Wash. I will host a discussion about the ways this 9-year-old Bellingham business has adapted and evolved in changing times, all without losing its sense of fun! We’ll talk about how the business got started, the launch of our original sock line, our evolution from just brick-and-mortar sales to the current online-only model that has arisen due to COVID-19, plus the importance of staying on top of trends and current events. For more information about ModSock, check out @ModSock on Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest or visit our retail website, ModSock.com.

Jenn Mason is the owner and founder of WinkWink: an identity-inclusive, all-ages, and decidedly “not creepy” sex shop in downtown Bellingham. With Pleasure is our Revolution emblazoned across the storefront, WinkWink is unapologetically political, focusing on sexual pleasure as a social justice issue. Prior to being an “orgasm savior” (in one customer’s words), Jenn worked for a variety of nonprofits as an event planning and communications consultant. She is the former Development and Education Director for Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Services, where she worked with over 10,000 students, creating and delivering violence prevention workshops and trauma counseling in every public middle and high school in Whatcom County. Jenn hold a master’s degree in public administration from Seattle University and is certified as a Community Sexual Health Resource by the Center for Sexual Pleasure and Health. She is also anticipating the completion her Sex Coach Certification in Summer 2020. Outside the shop, Jenn is the parent of a sweet 5-year-old with special needs and has served on the Bellingham Public Schools board of directors since 2017.

My name is Yin, and I own several businesses in Bellingham, WA. I graduated from WWU in 2011 with a degree in accounting and also a MBA in 2012. I started my career at a public accounting firm in Redmond and earned a CPA license (which I still maintain to this day), but realized that I had to follow my dream and passion for starting my own business. I left my job and never looked back.

It all started for me when cannabis became legal in Washington State and I was lucky enough to be awarded a marijuana retail license. With this, came an opportunity to learn about commercial real estate development as we had to construct our retail campus from the ground up. After a very labor-intensive year and a half of engineering, planning, and construction, we were finally able to open the doors to Trove Cannabis and a couple years later, Trove Coffee.

In light of the recent COVID-19 pandemic, my team and I were presented with an opportunity to help make a positive difference. Throughout the years, I was able to develop a lot of different business relationships including one that recently converted their large manufacturing facility in China to produce disposable face masks to help combat the crisis. Over the past 2 months, my team and I have been working around the clock to build up an infrastructure where we can help solve a major supply chain problem here in the US. As of 2 weeks ago, we recently went live with our new company, Clarimask and I’m really excited to share with you today on what it took to get here, what this means for us, and where we’re hoping to go next.

Samuel learned guitar at the age of 8 and started writing music at 10. Since then music has been the dream, but he never expected it to be what got him through life. It’s his brain and heart coming together to tell his story, but also to help him process and speak to the struggles of himself and others. Music is a universal language, and he’s honored to be able to communicate with it. Check him out on Spotify!

Aaron Spieldenner is a singer-songwriter whose musical influences include Sufjan Stevens, Wilco, Damien Jurado and Paul Simon. Raised in Seattle, Aaron tends to be particularly inspired by overcast skies, historical events and uncomfortable day-to-day interactions. Check him out on Soundcloud!

TREY (pronounced, “all caps trey”) is a progressive alt-pop outfit based in Bellingham, WA. Self-aware, pop-focused songwriting about relationships and insecurity lends itself to a blend of programmed electronic-driven music and dozens of tight live shows spanning the nation, bringing the band alongside equally energetic, equally-indie bands such as THE WLDLFE and Hardcastle, Vacation Manor and Jet Black Alley Cat. The band, centered on frontman Ernest (Trey) Brockman, has garnered almost 2 million streams in their first two years and released OFFDAY, their most polished collective work to date, on May 8. Check them out on Spotify!

Akrasia is a Bellingham based rock band. Loud. Trippy. Heavy. Emotionally charged. Come get lost in our world. Check them out on Spotify!

Originally from Cleveland, Ohio; moved to Bellingham in 2005. Graduated from Alfred University a “long, long time ago” with a BFA in Studio Art. Mike has lived and worked in numerous locations throughout the US including New York, California, Idaho, Alaska, Colorado, Arizona and Montana. For about the past ten years he’s followed a plant-based diet. He currently teaches Family & Consumer Sciences at Sehome High School.

As a child Nelson was always busy with his hands. He would spend hours building bridges and forts, creating extensive scenes for his action figures and cars. Later, that same ingenuity helped him build BMX and skateboard ramps for him and his friends. Always a lover of the arts in any form, Nelson drew and painted, created his own comic books and short stories.  In the end, the art form that he fell in love with was anything he could make with wood. While in his second year of college, studying Environmental Science and trying his hand at being a “starving artist”, he started a job with a furniture maker and restoration company. It was there that all the skills and practice throughout the years came into focus and helped him decide the career path he continues today.

When Côme Nzibaraga became a translator for the United Nations peacekeeping force in his native Burundi, he also became a target for vicious rebel groups. One night, Côme, then 20, was kidnapped, beaten, tortured and interrogated about UN operations. In his riveting talk, Côme inspires his audience to find their life purpose and express their gifts and talents, as he notes the parallels between being trapped in a refugee camp and trapped by fear that prevents us from living life to the fullest. If your audience is facing challenges such as forgiveness, discouragement, procrastination, disappointment or betrayal, this talk provides help and hope. 

Christy Johnson is an entrepreneur and educator. She is currently building her fourth start-up, Artemis Connection and facilitating courses at the Stanford Graduate School of Business. She also is adjunct faculty at the University of Washington where she teaches entrepreneurship. Ultimately, she believes people are an organization’s most important asset and by having a diverse workforce, organizations will have the most innovative solutions and best strategies. She has seven years of experience working in corporate strategy, including 3 ½ years at McKinsey & Co. Before this, Christy was an award-winning economics and mathematics teacher. In 2005, Junior Achievement recognized Christy as its National Teacher of the Year.

Arathi Ramappa is a certified executive coach, spiritual life coach, speaker, and management consultant who helps individuals thrive in life and business. Using the concepts of emotional intelligence, self-compassion, and conflict management, Arathi has helped clients reduce stress and increase productivity, execute business strategy, develop leadership skills, diminish conflict in relationships, implement positive behaviors, increase confidence, or apply spirituality to their daily life. She created the EASE Experience™ to help others Explore, Analyze, Strengthen, and Empower their thinking to identify and conquer obstacles to success and change their lives and businesses. Arathi offers one-on-one coaching to executives, c-suite, entrepreneurs, and independent professionals. She also works with organizations to help their leaders and teams enhance their emotional intelligence and become better problem-solvers in order to develop their company culture and increase collaboration, productivity, leadership skills, and learn conflict management. With twenty years of experience in technology and business management coupled with certifications in coaching and emotional intelligence, Arathi’s background as a serial entrepreneur and a veteran in the start-up space has provided her with extensive cross-functional knowledge that she can apply to any situation or client. She has managed teams globally in places such as India, Japan, China, Germany, Canada, Taiwan, Eastern Europe, as well as the U.S., and has worked with a wide range of clients from the financial, technology, healthcare, cybersecurity, and fashion industries, among others.